JEIGN 
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icOUsiN  PHILLIS 


I 


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COUSIN    PHILLIS. 


TALES    FROM    FOREIGN    LANDS. 


UNIFORM    IN    STYLE    AND    PRICE. 

* 

I. 

Memories :   A  Story  ol  German  Love.    Translated  from 

the  German  of  Max  Mi-i.i.er,  by  Geo.  P.  Ui-ton.     i6mo, 
'73  I«ges,  gilt  top. 

II. 

Graziella:   A  Story  of  Italian  Love.    Translated  from 

the  French  of  A.  de  Lamartinr,  by  James  B.  Runnion, 
161110,  235  pages,  gilt  top. 

III. 

Marie :   A  Story  of  Russian  Love.     From  the  Russian 

of  .Ai.KXANDKK   PisHKix,   by   Makie   H.    de  Zielin.ska. 
i6nio,  210  pages,  gilt  top. 

IV. 

Madeleine:  A  Story  of  French  Love.    Translated  from 

the    French   of  Julks    Sandkai;,  by    Francis   Charlot. 
i6mo,  244  pages,  gilt  top. 

V. 

Marianela :  A  Story  of  Spanish  Love.    Translated  from 

the  .Spanish  of  B.  Pkkez  Gai.dhs,  by  Helen  W.  Lester. 
i6mo,  243  pages,  gilt  top. 

VI. 

Cousin  Phillis:    A  Story  of  English  Love.     By  Mrs. 

Gaskf.li,.      i6mo,  222  pages,  gill  lop. 


COUSIN  PHILLIS 


A  STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE 


BY 

MRS.  GASKELL 


CHICAGO 
A.  C.  McCLURG   AND   COMPANY 

1S95 


SRLf 


■?- 
.|.- 

C^ 


COUSIN    PHILLIS. 


PART     I . 

IT  is  a  graat  thing  for  a  lad  when  he  is 
first  turned  into  the  independence  of 
lodginj^s.  I  do  not  think  I  ever  was  so  satis- 
fied and  proud  in  my  Hfe  as  when,  at  seven- 
teen, I  sat  down  in  a  httle  three-cornered  room 
ahove  a  pastry-cook's  shop  in  the  county  town 
of  Eltham.  My  fatlicr  had  left  me  that 
afternoon,  after  delivering  himself  of  a  few 
plain  precepts,  stronglv  expressed,  for  my 
guidance  in  the  new  course  of  life  on  which 
I  was  entering.  I  was  to  be  a  clerk  under 
the  engineer  who  had  undertaken  to  make 
the  little   branch  line   fiom   Eltham  to  Iloinby, 


G5557'i 


COUSIN  PHILLIS. 


My  father  had  got  me  this  situation,  which 
was  in  a  position  rather  above  his  own  in 
life;  or  perhaps  I  should  say,  above  the  sta- 
tion into  which  he  w^as  born  and  bred;  for  he 
was  raising  himself  every  year  in  men's  con- 
sideration and  respect.  He  was  a  mechanic 
by  trade,  but  he  had  some  inventive  genius, 
and  a  great  deal  of  perseverance,  and  had 
devised  several  valuable  improvements  in 
railway  machinery.  He  did  not  do  this  for 
profit,  though,  as  was  reasonable,  what  came 
in  tlie  natural  course  of  things  was  acceptable; 
he  worked  out  his  ideas  because,  as  he  said, 
"  until  he  could  put  them  into  shape,  they 
plagued  him  by  night  and  by  day."  But  this 
is  enough  about  my  dear  father;  it  is  a  good 
thing  for  a  country  where  there  are  many  like 
him.  He  was  a  sturdy  Independent  by  de- 
scent and  conviction  ;  and  this  it  was,  I  be- 
lieve, which  made  him  place  me  in  the  lodg- 
ings at  the  pastry-cook's.  The  shop  was 
kept  by  the  two  sisters  of  our  minister  at 
home;  and  this  was  considered  as  a  sort  of 
safeguard   to  my  morals,  when   I   was  turned 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.  9 

loose  upon  the  temptations  of  the  county 
town,  with  a  salary  of  thirty  pounds  a  year. 
My  father  had  given  up  two  precious  days, 
and  put  on  his  Sunday  clothes,  in  order  to 
bring  me  to  Eltham,  and  accompany  me  first 
to  the  office,  to  introduce  me  to  my  new 
master  (who  was  under  some  obligations  to 
my  father  for  a  suggestion),  and  next  to 
take  me  to  call  on  the  Independent  minister 
of  the  little  congregation  at  Eltham.  And 
then  he  left  me;  and  though  sorry  to  part  with 
him,  I  now  began  to  taste  with  relish  the 
pleasure  of  being  my  own  master.  I  un- 
packed the  hamper  that  my  mother  had  pro- 
vided me  with,  and  smelt  the  pots  of  preserve 
with  all  the  delight  of  a  possessor  who  might 
break  into  their  contents  at  any  time  he 
pleased.  1  handled  and  weighed  in  my  fancy 
the  home-cured  ham,  which  seemed  to  promise 
me  interminable  feasts;  and,  above  all,  there 
was  the  fine  savor  of  knowing  that  I  might 
eat  of  these  dainties  when  I  liked,  at  my  sole 
will,  not  dependent  on  the  pleasure  of  any- 
one  else,   however    indulgent.       I   stowed    my 


lO  COUS/N  PHILLIS. 

eatables  away  in  the  little  corner  cupboard  — 
that  room  was  all  corners,  and  everything  was 
placed  in  a  corner,  the  fireplace,  the  window, 
the  cupboard;  I  myself  seemed  to  be  the  only 
thing  in  the  middle,  and  there  was  hardly 
room  for  me.  The  table  was  made  of  a  fold- 
ing leaf  under  the  window,  and  the  window- 
looked  out  upon  the  market-place;  so  the 
studies  for  the  prosecution  of  which  my  father 
had  brought  himself  to  pay  extra  for  a  sitting- 
room  for  me  ran  a  considerable  chance  of 
being  diverted  from  books  to  men  and  women. 
I  was  to  have  my  meals  with  the  two  elderly 
Miss  Browns  in  the  little  parlor  behind  the 
three-cornered  shop  downstairs;  my  breakfasts 
and  dinners  at  least,  for,  as  my  hours  in  an 
evening  were  likely  to  be  uncertain,  my  tea 
or  supper  was  to  be  an  independent  meal. 

Then,  after  this  pride  and  satisfaction, 
came  a  sense  of  desolation.  I  had  never  been 
from  home  before,  and  I  was  an  onU'  child ; 
and  though  my  father's  spoken  maxim  had 
been,  "  Spare  the  rod,  and  spoil  the  cliild," 
yet,  unconsciously,  his  heart  had  yearned  after 


A   STOny  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.  II 

me,  and  his  ways  towaitl  me  were  more  tender 
than  he  knew,  or  would  have  approved  of  in 
himself,  could  he  have  known.  My  mother, 
who  never  professed  sternness,  was  far  more 
severe  than  my  father;  perhaps  my  boyish 
faults  annoyed  her  more;  for  I  remember, 
now  that  I  have  written  the  above  words,  how 
she  pleaded  for  me  once  in  my  riper  years, 
when  I  really  offended  against  my  father's 
sense  of   right. 

But  T  have  nothing  to  do  with  that  now. 
It  is  about  cousin  Phillis  that  I  am  going  to 
write,  and  as  yet  I  am  far  enough  from  even 
saying  who  cousin  Phillis  was. 

For  some  months  after  I  was  settled  in 
Eltham,  the  new  emplovment  in  which  I  was 
engaged  —  the  new  independence  of  my  life  — 
occupied  all  my  thoughts.  I  was  at  my  desk 
by  eight  o'clock,  home  to  dinner  at  one,  back 
at  the  oflice  by  two.  The  afternoon  work 
was  more  uncertain  than  the  morning's;  it 
might  be  tlie  same,  oi-  it  might  be  that  I  had 
to  accompany  Mr.  Iloldsworth,  the  managing 
engineer,  to  some    point   on    the    line    between 


12  COUS/JV  PTIILLIS. 

Eltham  and  Hornby.  This  I  always  enjoyed, 
because  of  the  variety,  and  because  of  the 
country  we  traversed  (which  was  very  wild 
and  pretty),  and  because  I  was  thrown  into 
companionship  with  Mr.  Iloldsworth,  who 
held  the  position  of  hero  in  my  boyish  mind. 
He  was  a  young  man  of  five-and-twenty  or 
so,  and  was  in  a  station  above  mine,  both  by 
birth  and  education;  and  he  had  travelled  on 
the  Continent,  and  wore  mustaches  and  whis- 
kers of  a  somewhat  foreign  fashion.  He  was 
really  a  fine  fellow  in  a  good  number  of  ways, 
and  I  might  have  fallen  into  much  worse 
hands. 

Every  Saturday  I  wrote  home,  telling  of 
my  weekly  doings  —  my  father  had  insisted 
upon  this;  but  there  was  so  little  variety  in 
my  life  that  I  often  found  it  hard  work  to  fill 
a  letter.  On  Sundays  I  went  twice  to  chapel, 
up  a  dark,  narrow  entry,  to  hear  droning 
hymns,  and  long  prayers,  and  a  still  longer 
sermon,  preached  to  a  small  congregation,  of 
which  T  was,  by  nearly  a  score  of  years,  the 
youngest  member.     Occasionally,   Mr.   Peters, 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.  13 

the  minister,  would  ask  me  home  to  tea  after 
the  second  service.  I  dreaded  the  honor,  for 
I  usually  sat  on  the  edge  of  my  chair  all  the 
evening,  and  answered  solemn  questions,  put 
in  a  deep  bass  voice,  until  household  prayer- 
time  came,  at  eight  o'clock,  when  Mrs.  Peters 
came  in,  smoothing  down  her  apron,  and  the 
maid-of-all-work  followed,  and  first  a  sermon, 
and  then  a  chapter  was  read,  and  a  long  im- 
promptu 25i"iyei'  followed,  till  some  instinct 
told  iVIr.  Peters  that  supper-time  had  come, 
and  we  rose  from  our  knees  with  hunger  for 
our  predominant  feeling.  Over  supper  the 
minister  did  unbend  a  little  into  one  or  two 
ponderous  jokes,  as  if  to  show  me  that  minis- 
ters were  men,  after  all.  And  then  at  ten 
o'clock  I  went  home,  and  enjoyed  my  long- 
repressed  yawns  in  the  three-cornered  room 
before  going  to  bed. 

Dinah  and  Hannah  Dawson,  so  their  names 
were  put  on  the  board  above  the  shop-door —  I 
always  called  them  Miss  Dawson  and  Miss 
Hannah  — considered  these  visits  of  mine  to 
Mr.  Peters  as  the  greatest   honor  a  young  man 


14  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 


could  have;  and  evidently  thought  that  if,  after 
such  privileges,  I  did  not  work  out  my  salva- 
tion, I  was  a  sort  of  modern  Judas  Iscariot.  On 
the  contrary,  they  shook  their  heads  over  my 
intercourse  with  Mr.  Holdsworth.  He  had 
been  so  kind  to  me  in  many  ways,  that  when  I 
cut  into  my  ham,  I  hovered  over  the  thought 
of  asking  him  to  tea  in  my  room,  more  espe- 
cially as  the  annual  fair  was  being  held  in 
Eltham  market-place,  and  the  sight  of  the 
booths,  the  merry-go-rounds,  the  wild-beast 
shows,  and  such  country  pomps,  was  (as  I 
thought  at  seventeen)  very  attractive.  But 
when  I  ventured  to  allude  to  my  wish  in  even 
distant  terms.  Miss  Hannah  caught  me  up,  and 
spoke  of  the  sinfulness  of  such  sights,  and 
something  about  wallowing  in  the  mire,  and 
then  vaulted  into  France,  and  spoke  evil  of  the 
nation,  and  all  who  had  ever  set  foot  therein, 
till,  seeing  that  her  anger  was  concentrating 
itself  into  a  point,  and  that  that  point  was  Mr. 
Holdsworth,  I  thought  it  would  be  better  to 
finish  my  breakfast,  and  make  what  haste  I 
could  out  of   the  sound  of  her  voice.      I   rather 


A    STORr  OF  EIVGLTSH  LOVE.  1 5 

wondered  afterward  to  hear  her  and  Miss 
Dawson  counting  up  tlieir  weekly  profits  with 
glee  and  saying  that  a  pastry-cook's  shop  in 
the  corner  of  the  market-place,  in  Eltham  fair 
week,  was  no  such  bad  thing.  However,  I 
never  ventured  to  ask  Mr.  Holdsworth  to  my 
lodgings. 

There  is  not  much  to  tell  about  this  first 
year  of  mine  at  Eltham.  But  when  I  was 
nearly  nineteen,  and  beginning  to  think  of 
whiskers  on  my  own  account,  I  came  to  know 
cousin  Phillis,  whose  very  existence  had  been 
unknown  to  me  till  then.  Mr.  Holdsworth 
and  I  had  been  out  to  Heathbridge  for  a  day, 
working  hard,  Heathbridge  was  near  Hornby, 
for  our  line  of  railway  was  above  half  finished. 
Of  course,  a  day's  outing  was  a  great  thing  to 
tell  about  in  my  weekly  letters;  and  I  fell  to 
describing  the  country  —  a  fault  I  was  not 
often  guilty  of.  I  told  my  father  of  the  bogs, 
all  over  wild  myrtle  and  soft  moss,  and  shaking 
ground  over  which  we  Inad  to  carry  our  line; 
and  how  Air.  Holdsvvortli  and  I  had  gone  for 
our   mid-day  meals  —  for  we    had   to  stay  here 


l6  COUSrN  PHILLIS. 

for  two  days  and  a  night  —  to  a  pretty  village 
hard  by,  Heathbridge  proper;  and  how  I  hoped 
we  should  often  have  to  go  there,  for  the  shak- 
ing, uncertain  ground  was  puzzling  our  engi- 
neers —  one  end  of  the  line  going  up  as  soon 
as  the  other  was  weighted  down.  ( I  had  no 
thought  for  the  shareholders'  interests,  as  may 
be  seen;  we  had  to  make  a  new  line  on  firmer 
ground  before  the  junction  railway  was  com- 
pleted.) I  told  all  this  at  great  length,  thank- 
ful to  fill  up  my  paper.  By  return  letter,  I 
heard  that  a  second  cousin  of  my  mother's  was 
married  to  the  Independent  minister  of  Horn- 
by, Ebenezer  Holman  by  name,  and  lived  at 
Heathbridge  proper;  the  very  Heathbridge  I 
had  described,  or  so  my  mother  believed,  for 
she  had  never  seen  her  cousin  Phillis  Green, 
who  was  something  of  an  heiress  (my  father 
believed),  being  her  father's  only  child,  and  ok! 
Thomas  Green  had  owned  an  estate  of  near 
upon  fifty  acres,  which  must  have  come  to  his 
daughter.  ISIy  mother's  feeling  of  kinship 
seemed  to  have  been  strongly  stirred  bv  the 
mention  of  Heathbridge,  for  my  father  said  she 


A    STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.  17 

desired  me,  if  ever  I  went  thither  again,  to 
make  inquiry  for  the  Reverend  Ebenezer  Hol- 
man;  and  if  indeed  he  lived  there,  I  was  fur- 
ther to  ask  if  he  had  not  married  one  Phillis 
Green ;  and  if  both  these  questions  were  ans- 
wered in  the  affirmative,  I  was  to  go  and  intro- 
duce myself  as  the  only  child  of  Margaret 
Manning,  born  Moneypenny.  I  was  enraged 
at  myself  for  having  named  Heathbridge  at  all, 
when  I  found  what  it  was  drawing  down  upon 
me.  One  Independent  minister,  as  I  said  to 
myself,  was  enough  for  any  man,  and  here  I 
knew  (that  is  to  say,  I  had  been  catechized  on 
.Sabbath  mornings  by)  Mr.  Hunter,  our  min- 
ister at  home;  and  I  had  had  to  be  civil  to 
old  Peters  at  Eltham,  and  behave  myself 
for  five  hours  running  whenever  he  asked 
me  to  tea  at  his  house;  and  now,  just  as  I  felt 
the  free  air  blowing  about  me  up  at  Ileatii- 
bridge,  I  was  to  ferret  out  anotlier  minister,  and 
I  should  perhaps  have  to  be  catechized  by  him, 
or  else  asked  to  tea  at  his  house,  l^esides,  I  did 
not  like  ])iishing  myself  upon  strangers,  who 
perhaps  had  nexer  heaid  of  my  mother's  n.niie. 


l8  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

and  such  an  odd  name  as  it  was  —  Money- 
penny;  and  if  they  had,  had  never  cared  more 
for  her  than  she  had  for  them,  apparently,  until 
this  unlucky  mention  of  Ileathbridge. 

Still,  I  would  not  disobey  my  parents  in 
such  a  trifle,  however  irksome  it  might  be.  So 
the  next  time  our  business  took  me  to  Heath- 
bridge,  and  we  were  dining  in  the  little  sanded 
inn-parlor,  I  took  the  opportunity  of  Mr. 
Iloldsworth's  being  out  of  the  room,  and  asked 
the  questions  which  I  was  bidden  to  ask  of  the 
rosy-cheeked  maid.  1  was  either  unintelligible 
or  she  was  stupid;  for  she  said  she  did  not 
know,  but  would  ask  master;  and  of  course  the 
landlord  came  in  to  understand  what  it  was  I 
wanted  to  know;  and  I  had  to  bring  out  all  m} 
stammering  inquiries  before  Mr.  lloldsworth, 
who  would  never  have  attended  to  them,  I  dare 
say,  if  I  had  not  blushed,  and  blundered,  and 
made  such  a  fool  of  m)self. 

"Yes,"  the  landlord  said,  "the  Hope  Farm 
was  in  Heathbridge  proper,  and  the  owner's 
name  was  Holman,  and  he  w  as  an  Independent 
minister,  and,  as  far  as  the  landlord  could  tell, 


A   STOR7'   OF  EJVCL/SH  LOVE.         19 

his  wife's  Christian  name  was  Pliillis,  anyhow 
her  maiden  name  was  Green." 

"  Relations  of  yours  ?  "  asked  Mr.  Holds- 
worth. 

"  No,  sir  ^  only  my  mother's  second  cousins. 
Yes,  I  suppose  they  are  relations.  But  I  never 
saw  them  in  my  life." 

"The  Hope  Farm  is  not  a  stone's  throw 
fi'om  here,"  said  the  ofHcious  landlord,  going 
to  the  window.  "  If  you  carry  your  eye  over 
yon  bed  of  holl}hocks,  over  the  damson  trees 
in  the  orchard  yonder,  you  may  see  a  stack  of 
queer-like  stone  chimneys.  Them  is  the  Hope 
Farm  chimneys;  it's  an  old  place,  though  Hol- 
man  keeps  it  in  good  order." 

iVIr.  Holdsworth  had  risen  from  the  table 
with  more  promptitude  than  I  had,  and  was 
standing  bv  the  window,  looking.  At  the 
landlord's  last  words  he  turned  round,  smiling 
—  "It  is  not  often  that  parsons  know  how  to 
keep  land  in  f)rder,  is  it?" 

"Beg  pardon,  sir,  but  I  must  speak  as  I  find; 
and  Minister  Ilolman  —  we  call  tlie  church 
clergyman  here  'prnson,'  sii-;  he  would  i)e  0  bit 


20  COUSIN   PHILIJS. 

jealous  if  he  heard  a  Dissenter  called  parson  — 
Minister  Holman  knows  what  he's  ahout  as 
well  as  e'er  a  faimer  in  the  neighhorhood.  He 
gives  up  five  days  a  week  to  his  own  work,  and 
two  to  the  Lord's;  and  it  is  difficult  to  say  which 
he  works  hardest  at.  He  spends  Saturday  and 
Sunday  a-writing  sermons  and  a-visiting  his 
flock  at  Hornl)\  ;  and  at  five  o'clock  on  Mon- 
day morning  he'll  be  guiding  his  plow  in  the 
Hope  Farm  yonder  just  as  well  as  if  he  could 
neither  read  nor  write.  But  youi  dinner  will 
be  getting  cold,  gentlemen." 

So  we  went  back  to  table.  After  awhile 
Mr.  Holdsworth  broke  the  silence:  —  "If  I 
were  you.  Manning,  I'd  look  up  these  relations 
of  yours.  You  can  go  and  see  what  they're 
like  while  we're  waiting  for  Dobson's  estimates, 
and  I'll  smoke  a  cigar  in  the  garden  mean- 
while." 

"  Tliank  you,  sir.  But  1  don't  know  them, 
and  I  don't  think  I  want  to  know  them." 

"  What  did  you  ask  all  those  ciuestions  for, 
then?"  said  he,  looking  quicklv  u])  at  me.  He 
had  no  notion  of  doing  or  saving  things  with- 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         21 

out  a  purpose.  I  did  not  answer,  so  he  contin- 
ued, "Make  up  your  mind,  and  go  off  and 
see  what  this  farmer-minister  is  Hke,  and  come 
hack  and  tell  me  —  I  should  like  to  hear." 

I  was  so  in  the  hahit  of  yielding  to  his 
authority,  or  influence,  that  I  never  thought  of 
resisting,  but  went  on  my  errand,  though  I 
remember  feeling  as  if  I  would  rather  have 
had  my  head  cut  off.  The  landlord,  who  had 
evidently  taken  an  interest  in  tlie  event  of  our 
discussion  in  a  way  that  country  landlords  have, 
accompanied  me  to  the  house  door,  and  gave 
me  repeated  directions,  as  if  I  was  likely  to 
miss  my  way  in  two  hundred  yards.  But  I 
listened  to  him,  for  I  was  glad  of  the  delay,  to 
sciew'  up  my  courage  for  the  effort  of  facing 
unknown  people  and  introducing  myself.  I 
went  along  the  lane,  I  recollect,  switching  all 
tlie  taller  roadside  weeds,  till,  after  a  turn  or 
two,  I  found  myself  close  in  front  of  the  Hope 
Farm.  There  was  a  garden  between  the  house 
and  the  shady,  grassy  lane;  I  afterward  found 
tliat  this  garden  was  called  the  court;  perhaps 
because  there  was  a  low  wall  around  it,  with  an 


22  COUSIN  PIIILLIS. 

iron  railing  on  the  top  of  the  wall,  and  two 
great  gates  between  pillars  ciowned  with  stone 
balls  for  a  state  entrance  to  the  flagged  path 
leading  up  to  the  front  door.  It  was  not  the 
habit  of  the  place  to  go  in  either  by  these  great 
gates  or  by  the  front  door;  the  gates,  indeed, 
were  locked,  as  I  found,  though  the  door  stood 
wide  open.  I  had  to  go  around  by  a  side  path 
lightly  worn  on  a  broad  grassy  way,  which  led 
past  the  court  wall,  past  a  horse-mount,  half 
covered  with  stone-crop  and  the  little  wild  yel- 
low fumitory,  to  another  door  —  "the  curate," 
as  I  found  it  was  termed  by  the  master  of  the 
house,  while  the  front  door,  "  handsome  and  all 
for  show,"  was  termed  the  "  rector."  I  knocked 
with  my  hand  upon  the  "curate"  door;  a  tall 
girl,  about  my  own  age,  as  I  thought,  came 
and  opened  it,  and  stood  there  silent,  waiting 
to  know  my  ei'rand.  I  see  her  now — Cousin 
Phillis.  The  westering  sun  shone  full  upon 
her,  and  made  a  slanting  stream  of  light  into 
the  room  within.  She  was  dressed  in  daik 
blue  cotton  of  some  kind,  up  to  her  throat, 
down   to   her  wrists,  with    a   little   frill   of    the 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         23 


same  wherever  it  touched  her  white  skin.  And 
such  a  white  skin  as  it  was!  I  have  never  seen 
the  hke.  She  had  Hght  hair,  nearer  yellow 
than  any  other  color.  She  looked  me  steadily 
in  the  face  with  lar«^e,  quiet  eyes,  wonderin()f, 
hut  untroubled  by  the  sight  of  a  stranger.  I 
thought  it  odd  that,  so  old,  so  full-grown  as  she 
was,  she  should  wear  a  pinafore  over  her 
gown. 

Before  I  had  quite  made  up  my  mind  what 
to  say  in  reply  to  her  mute  inquiry  of  what  I 
wanted  there,  a  woman's  voice  called  out,  "Who 
is  it,  Phillis?  If  it  is  anyone  for  buttermilk 
send  them  around  to  the  back  door." 

I  thought  I  could  rather  speak  to  the  owner 
of  that  voice  than  to  the  girl  liefore  me;  so  I 
passed  her,  and  stood  at  the  entrance  of  a  room, 
hat  in  hand,  for  this  side  door  opened  straight 
into  the  hall  or  house-place  wheie  the  family 
sat  when  work  was  done.  There  was  a  brisk 
little  woman  of  forty  or  so  ironing  some  huge 
muslin  cravats  under  tlie  light  of  a  long  vine- 
shaded  casement  window.  She  looked  at  me 
distruslftilh  till  I  began  to  sj^eak.     "  My  name 


24  COUSIiY  PIIILLTS. 

is  Paul  Manninji^,"  said  I;  l^iit  I  saw  she  did 
not  know  the  name.  "My  mother's  name  was 
^loneypcnny,"  said  1  —  "Margaret  Money- 
penny." 

"And  she  married  one  John  Manning,  of 
Birmingham,"  said  Mrs.  Ilolman,  eagerly. 
"And  you'll  he  her  son.  Sit  down!  I  am 
right  glad  to  see  you.  To  think  of  your  being 
Margaret's  son!  Why  she  was  almost  a  child 
not  so  long  ago.  Well,  to  be  sure,  it  is  five- 
and-twenty  years  ago.  And  what  brings  you 
into  these  parts? " 

She  sat  down  herself,  as  if  opjoressed  by 
her  curiosity  as  to  all  the  five-and-twenty  years 
that  had  passed  by  since  she  had  seen  my 
mother.  Her  daughter  Phillis  took  up  her  knit- 
ting—  a  long  gray  worsted  man's  stocking,  I 
remember  —  and  knitted  away  without  looking 
at  her  work.  I  felt  that  the  steady  gaze  of 
those  deep  gray  eyes  was  upon  me,  though 
once,  when  I  stealthily  raised  mine  to  hers,  she 
was  examining  something  on  the  wall  above 
my  head. 

When  I  had  answered  all  my  cousin  Hoi- 


A   STOR}'   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         25 

mail's  questions,  she  heaved  a  long  hreath,  and 
said,  "To  think  of  Margaret  Aloneypenny's 
1)oy  being  in  our  house!  I  wish  the  minister 
was  here.  Phillis,  in  what  field  is  thy  father 
to-day?" 

"In  the  five-acre;  they  are  beginning  to 
cut  the  corn." 

"  He'll  not  like  being  sent  for,  then,  else  I 
should  have  liked  you  to  have  seen  the  minister. 
But  the  five-acre  is  a  good  step  off.  You  shall 
have  a  glass  of  wine  and  a  bit  of  cake  before 
you  stir  from  this  house,  though.  You're  bound 
to  go,  you  say,  or  else  the  minister  comes  in 
mostly  when  the  men  have  theii'  four  o'clock." 

"  I  must  go —  I  ought  to  have  been  off  be- 
fore now." 

"Here,  then,  Phillis,  take  the  keys."  She 
gave  her  daughter  some  whispered  directions, 
and  Phillis  left  the  room. 

"She  is  my  cousin,  is  she  not?"  I  asked. 
I  knew  she  was,  but  somehow  I  wanted  to  talk 
of  her,  and  did  not  know  how  to  begin. 

"Yes  —  Phillis  Holman.  vShe  is  our  only 
child  —  now." 


26  COUSIN  PI  I  ILL  IS. 

Either  from  that  "  now,"  or  from  a  strange 
momentary  vvistfuhiess  in  her  eyes,  I  knew 
that  there  had  been  more  children,  who  were 
now  dead. 

"How  old  is  cousin  Phillis?"  said  I, 
scarcely  venturing  on  the  new  name,  it  seemed 
too  prettily  familiar  for  me  to  call  her  by  it; 
but  cousin  Holman  took  no  notice  of  it,  answer- 
ing straight  to  the  purpose. 

"  Seventeen  last  May-day ;  but  the  minister 
does  not  like  to  hear  me  calling  it  May-day," 
said  she,  checking  herself  with  a  little  awe. 
"  Phillis  was  seventeen  on  the  first  day  of  May 
last,"  she  repeated  in  an  amended  edition, 

"  And  I  am  nineteen  in  another  month," 
thought  I,  to  myself;  I  don't  know  why. 

Then  Phillis  came  in,  carrying  a  tray  with 
wine  and  cake  upon  it. 

"  We  keep  a  house-servant,"  said  cousin 
Holman,  "  but  it  is  churning-day,  and  she  is 
busy."  It  was  meant  as  a  little  proud  apology 
for  her  daughter's  being  the  handmaiden. 

"  I  like  doing  it,  mother,"  said  Phillis,  in 
her  grave,  full  voice. 


A   STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         27 

I  felt  as  if  I  were  somebody  in  the  Old 
Testament  — who,  I  could  not  recollect  —  being 
served  and  waited  upon  by  the  daughter  of 
the  host.  Was  I  like  Abraham's  steward, 
when  Rebekah  gave  him  to  drink  at  the  well? 
I  thought  Isaac  had  not  gone  the  pleasantest 
way  to  work  in  winning  him  a  wife.  But 
Phillis  never  thought  about  such  things.  She 
was  a  stately,  gracious  young  woman,  in  the 
dress  and  with  the  simplicity  of  a  child. 

As  I  had  been  taught,  I  drank  to  the 
health  of  my  new-found  cousin  and  her  hus- 
band, and  then  T  ventured  to  name  my  cousin 
Phillis  with  a  little  bow  of  my  head  toward 
her;  but  I  was  too  awkward  to  look  and  see 
how  she  took  my  compliment.  "  I  must  go 
now,"  said  I,  rising. 

Neither  of  the  women  had  thought  of 
sharing  in  the  wine;  cousin  Ilolman  had 
broken  a  l)it  of  cake  for  form's  sake. 

"  1  wish  the  minister  had  been  within,"  said 
his  wife,  rising,  too.  Secretly  I  was  very  glad 
he  was  not.  I  did  not  take  kindlv  to  ministers 
m    those    days,  and    T    thought    he    must    be   a 


28  COUS/N  PIULLIS. 

particular  kind  of  man,  by  his  objecting  to  the 
term  May-day.  But  before  I  went,  cousin 
riolman  made  me  promise  that  I  would  come 
back  on  the  Saturday  following  and  spend 
Sunday  with  them,  when  I  should  see  some- 
thing of  "  the  minister." 

"  Come  on  Friday,  if  you  can,"  were  her 
last  words  as  she  stood  at  the  curate-door, 
shading  her  eyes  from  the  sinking  sun  with 
her  hand. 

Inside  the  house  sat  cousin  Phillis,  her 
golden  hair,  her  dazzling  complexion,  lighting 
up  the  corner  of  the  vine-shadowed  room.  She 
had  not  risen  when  I  bade  her  good-by;  she 
had  looked  at  me  straight  as  she  said  her  tran- 
quil words  of  farewell. 

I  found  Mr.  Holdsworth  down  at  the  line, 
hard  at  work  superintending.  As  soon  as  he 
had  a  pause,  he  said,  "  Well,  Manning,  what 
are  the  new  cousins  like?  How  do  preaching 
and  farming  seem  to  get  on  together?  If  the 
mmister  turns  out  to  be  practical  as  well  as 
reverend,  T  sliall  begin  to  respect  him." 

But   he   hardly  attended   to  my  answer,  he 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         29 

was  so  much  more  occupied  with  dii-ecting  his 
work-people.  Indeed,  my  answer  did  not 
come  very  readily;  and  the  most  distinct  part 
of  it  was  the  mention  of  the  invitation  that  had 
been  given  me. 

"  Oh,  of  course  you  can  go —  and  on  Friday, 
too,  if  you  like;  there  is  no  reason  why  not 
this  week,  and  you  have  done  a  long  spell  of 
work  this  time,  old  fellow." 

I  thought  that  I  did  not  want  to  go  on 
Friday;  but  when  the  day  came,  I  found  that 
I  should  prefer  going  to  staying  away,  so  I 
availed  myself  of  Mr.  Holdsworth's  permis- 
sion, and  went  over  to  Hope  Farm  some  time 
in  the  afternoon,  a  little  later  than  my  last 
visit.  I  found  the  "  curate  "  open  to  admit  the 
soft  September  air,  so  tempered  by  the  warmth 
of  the  sun  that  it  was  wai'mer  out  of  doors 
than  in,  although  the  wooden  log  lay  smolder- 
ing in  front  of  a  heap  of  hot  asiies  on  the 
hearth.  The  vine-leaves  ovei'  the  window  had 
a  tinge  more  vellow,  their  edges  were  here  and 
there  scoic-hcd  and  ln'owiied;  there  was  no 
ironing    alxnit,    and    cousin    Ilolinan     sat     just 


30  COUSIN  PJIILLIS. 

outside  the  house,  mending  a  shirt.  Phillis 
was  at  her  knitting  indoors;  it  seemed  as  if 
she  had  been  at  it  all  the  week.  The  many- 
speckled  fowls  were  pecking  about  in  the 
farmyard  beyond,  and  the  milk-cans  glittered 
with  brightness,  hung  out  to  sweeten.  The 
court  was  so  full  of  flowers  that  they  crept  out 
upon  the  low-covered  wall  and  horse-mount, 
and  were  even  to  be  found  self-sown  upon  the 
turf  that  bordered  the  path  to  the  back  of  the 
house.  I  fancied  that  my  Sunday  coat  was 
scented  for  days  afterward  by  the  bushes  of 
sweetbrier  and  the  fraxinella  that  perfumed 
the  air.  From  time  to  time  cousin  Holman 
put  her  hand  into  a  covered  basket  at  her  feet, 
and  threw  handsful  of  corn  down  for  the 
pigeons  that  cooed  and  fluttered  in  the  air 
around,  in  expectation  of  this  treat. 

I  had  a  thorough  welcome  as  soon  as  she 
saw  me.  "Now  this  is  kind  —  this  is  right 
down  friendly,"  shaking  my  hand  warmly. 
"  Phillis,  your  Cousin  Manning  is  come!" 

"Call  me  Paul,  will  you  ?"  said  I;  "they 
call  me  so  at  home,  and  Manning  in  the  office." 


A    STORl^  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         31 

"  Well,  Paul,  then.  Your  room  is  all 
ready  for  you,  Paul,  for,  as  I  said  to  the  min- 
ister, '  ril  have  it  ready  whether  he  comes  o' 
Friday  or  not.'  And  the  minister  said  he 
must  go  up  to  the  Ashfield  whether  you  were 
to  come  or  not;  but  he  would  come  home 
betimes  to  see  if  you  were  here.  I'll  show 
you  to  your  room,  and  you  can  wash  the  dust 
off   a  bit." 

After  I  came  down,  I  think  she  did  not 
quite  know  what  to  do  with  me;  or  she  might 
think  that  I  was  dull;  or  she  might  have  work 
to  do  in  which  I  hindered  her;  for  she  called 
Phillis,  and  bade  her  put  on  her  bonnet,  and 
go  with  me  to  the  Ashfield,  and  find  father. 
So  we  set  off,  I  in  a  little  flutter  of  desire  to 
make  myself  agreeable,  but  wishing  that  my 
companion  were  not  quite  so  tall;  for  she  was 
al)ove  me  in  height.  ^Vhile  I  was  wondering 
how  to  begin  our  conversation,  she  took  up 
the  words. 

"  I  suppose,  cousin  Paul,  you  have  to  be 
very  busy  at  your  work  all  day  long  in  gen- 
eral." 


32  COUSIN  PH/LLIS. 

"  Yes,  we  have  to  be  in  the  office  at  half- 
past  eight;  and  we  have  an  hour  for  dinner, 
and  then  we  go  at  it  again  till    eight  or   nine." 

"  Then  you  have  not  much  time  for  read- 
ing." 

"  No,"  said  I,  with  a  sudden  consciousness 
that  I  did  not  make  the  most  of  what  leisure  I 
had. 

"  No  more  have  I.  Father  always  gets 
an  liour  before  going  a-field  in  the  mornings, 
but  mother  does  not  like  me  to  get  up  so 
early." 

"  My  mother  is  always  wanting  me  to  get 
up  earlier  when  I  am  at  home." 

"  What  time  do  you   get   up?" 

"  Oh  !  —  ah  !  —  sometimes  half-past  six; 
not  often  though;"  for  I  remembered  only 
twice  that  I  had  done  so  during  the  past  sum- 
mer. 

She  turned   her  head   and   looked  at  me. 

"Father  is  up  at  three;  and  so  was  mother 
till  she  was  ill.     I  should  like  to  be  up  at  four." 

"Your  father  up  at  three!  Why,  what 
has   he  to  do   at  that  hour  ? " 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH    LOVE.         33 

"What  has  he  not  to  do?  He  has  his 
private  exercise  in  his  own  room;  he  always 
rings  the  great  bell  which  calls  the  men  to 
milking;  he  rouses  up  Betty,  our  maid;  as 
often  as  not  he  gives  the  horses  their  feed 
before  the  man  is  up  —  for  Jem,  who  takes 
care  of  the  horses,  is  an  old  man;  and  father 
is  always  loth  to  disturb  him;  he  looks  at  the 
calves,  and  the  shoulders,  heels,  traces,  chaff, 
and  corn  before  the  horses  go  a-field;  he  has 
often  to  whii5-cord  the  plow-whips;  he  sees 
the  hogs  fed;  he  looks  into  the  swill -tubs, 
and  writes  his  orders  for  what  is  wanted  for 
man  and  beast;  yes,  and  for  fuel,  too.  And 
tlien,  if  he  has  a  bit  of  time  to  spare,  he 
comes  in  and  reads  with  me  — but  only  En- 
glish; we  keep  Latin  for  the  evenings,  that  we 
may  have  time  to  enjoy  it;  and  then  he  calls 
in  the  man  to  breakfast,  and  cuts  the  boys' 
bread  and  cheese;  and  sees  their  wooden  bot- 
tles filled  and  sends  them  off  to  their  work  — 
and  by  this  time  it  is  half-past  six,  and  we 
have  our  breakfast.  Tliere  is  father,"  she 
exclnimed,  pointing  out  to  me  a  man  in  his 
3 


34  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

shirt-sleeves,  taller  by  the  head  than  the  other 
two  with  whom  he  was  working.  We  only 
saw  him  through  the  leaves  of  the  ash-trees 
growing  in  the  hedge,  and  I  thought  I  must 
be  confusing  the  figures,  or  mistaken:  that 
man  still  looked  like  a  very  powerful  laborer, 
and  had  none  of  the  precise  demureness  of 
appearance  which  I  had  always  imagined  was 
the  1^ characteristic  of  a  minister.  It  was  the 
Reverend  Ebenezer  Holman,  however.  He 
gave  us  a  nod  as  we  entered  the  stubble-field; 
and  I  think  he  would  have  come  to  meet  us 
but  that  he  was  in  the  middle  of  giving  some 
directions  to  his  men.  I  could  see  that  Phillis 
was  built  more  after  his  type  than  her  moth- 
er's. He,  like  his  daughter,  was  largely 
made,  and  of  a  fair,  ruddy  complexion, 
whereas  hers  was  brilliant  and  delicate.  His 
hair  had  been  yellow  or  sandy,  but  now  was 
grizzled.  Yet  his  gray  hairs  betokened  no 
failure  in  strength.  I  never  saw  a  more  pow- 
erful man — deep  chest,  lean  flanks,  well- 
planted  head.  By  this  time  we  were  nearly 
up  to    him;    and   he    interrupted    himself   and 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.  35 

stepped  forward;  holding  out  his  hand  tome 
but   addressing    PhilHs. 

"Well,  my  lass,  this  is  cousin  Manning,  I 
suppose.  Wait  a  minute,  young  man,  and 
I'll  put  on   my  coat,  and   give   you   a  decorous 

and    formal    welcome.        But Ned    Hall, 

there  ought  to  be  a  water-furrow  across  this 
land:  it's  a  nasty,  stiff,  clayey,  dauby  bit  of 
ground,  and  thou  and  I  must  fall  to,  come 
next  Monday  —  I  beg  your  pardon,  cousin 
Manning  —  and  there's  old  Jem's  cottage 
wants  a  bit  of  thatch;  you  can  do  that  job  to- 
morrow while  I  am  busy."  Then,  suddenly 
changing  the  tone  of  his  deep  bass  voice  to 
an  odd  suggestion  of  chapels  and  preachers, 
he  added,  "  Xow,  I  will  give  out  the  psalm, 
'Come  all  harmonious  tongues,'  to  be  sung  to 
'  Mount   Ephraim  '  tune." 

He  lifted  his  spade  in  his  hand,  and  began 
to  beat  time  with  it;  the  two  laborers  seemed 
to  know  both  words  and  music,  thougli  I  did 
not;  and  so  did  Phillis:  her  rich  voice  fol- 
lowed her  father's  as  he  set  the  tune;  and 
the  men    came   in    with   more  uncertaintv,   but 


36  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

still  harmoniously.  Phillis  looked  at  me  once 
or  twice  with  a  little  surprise  at  my  silence; 
but  I  did  not  know  the  words.  There  we 
five  stood,  bareheaded,  excepting  Phillis,  in 
the  brawny  stubble-field,  from  which  all  the 
shocks  of  corn  had  not  yet  been  carried  —  a 
dark  wood  on  one  side,  where  the  wood- 
pigeons  were  cooing;  blue  distance  seen 
through  the  ash-trees  on  the  other.  Some- 
how, I  think  that  if  I  had  known  the  words, 
and  could  have  sung,  my  throat  would  have 
been  choked  up  by  the  feeling  of  the  unac- 
customed scene. 

The  hymn  was  ended,  and  the  men  had 
drawn  off  before  I  could  stir.  I  saw  the 
minister  beginning  to  put  on  his  coat,  and 
looking  at  me  with  friendly  inspection  in  his 
gaze,   before   I  could   rouse  myself. 

"  I  dare  say  you  railway  gentlemen  don't 
wind  up  the  day  with  singing  a  psalm  to- 
gether," said  he;  "but  it  is  not  a  bad  practice, 
not  a  bad  practice.  We  have  had  it  a  bit 
earlier  to-day  for  hospitality's  sake  —  that's 
all." 


A    STOR7'   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         37 

I  had  nothing  particular  to  say  to  this, 
though  I  was  thinking  a  great  deal.  From 
time  to  time  I  stole  a  look  at  my  companion. 
His  coat  was  hlack,  and  so  was  his  waistcoat; 
neckcloth  he  had  none,  his  strong  full  throat 
heing  bare  above  the  snow-white  shirt.  He 
wore  drab-colored  knee-breeches,  gray  worsted 
stockings  (I  thought  I  knew  the  maker),  and 
strong-nailed  shoes.  He  carried  his  hat  in  his 
hand,  as  if  he  liked  to  feel  the  coming  breeze 
lifting  his  hair.  After  awhile,  I  saw  that  the 
father  took  hold  of  the  daughter's  hand,  and 
so,  they  holding  each  other,  went  along  toward 
home.  We  had  to  cross  a  lane.  In  it  there 
were  two  little  children,  one  Iviug  prone  on 
the  grass  in  a  passion  of  crying,  the  other 
standing  stock  still,  with  its  finger  in  its 
mouth,  the  large  tears  slowly  rolling  down  its 
cheeks  for  sympathy.  The  cause  of  their 
distress  was  evident:  there  was  a  broken 
brown  pitcher,  and  a  little  pool  of  spilt  milk 
on   the  road. 

"Hollo!  Hollo!  What's  all  this?"  said 
the  minister.      "  Why,    what    have    you    been 


38  COUSIN  PHIL  LIS. 

about,  Tommy"  lifting  the  little  petticoated 
lad,  who  was  lying  sobbing,  with  one  vigor- 
ous arm.  Tommy  looked  at  him  with  sur- 
prise in  his  round  eyes,  but  no  affright  — 
they  were  evidently  old  acquaintances. 

"Mammy's  jug!"  said  he,  at  last,  begin- 
ning  to   cry  afresh. 

"  Well  !  and  will  crving  piece  mammy's 
jug,  or  pick  up  spilt  milk?  How  did  you 
manage  it,  Tommy?" 

"He"  (jerking  his  head  at  the  other) 
"  and  me  was  running  races." 

"  Tommy  said  he  could  beat  me,"  put  in 
the  other. 

"  Now,  I  wonder  what  will  make  you 
two  silly  lads  mind,  and  not  run  races  again 
with  a  pitcher  of  milk  between  you,"  said  the 
minister,  as  if  musing.  "  I  might  flog  you, 
and  so  save  mammy  the  trouble;  for  I  dare 
say  she'll  do  it  if  T  don't."  The  fresh  burst 
of  whimpering  from  both  showed  the  proba- 
bility of  this.  "  Or  I  might  take  you  to  the 
Hope  Farm,  and  give  you  some  more  milk ; 
but  then   you'd    be   running   races   again,   and 


A   STOUT  OF  ENGLISH   LOVE.        39 

my  milk  would  follow  that  to  the  ground, 
and  make  another  white  pool.  I  think  the 
flogging   would  be   best  —  don't  you?" 

"  We  would  never  run  races  no  more," 
said   the  elder   of    the   two. 

"  Then  you'd  not  be  boys ;  you'd  be 
angels." 

"  No,  we   shouldn't." 

"Why   not?" 

They  looked  into  each  other's  eyes  for 
an  answer  to  this  puzzling  question.  At 
length,   one   said,  "  Angels  is  dead   folk." 

"Come;  we'll  not  get  too  deep  into  the- 
ology. What  do  you  think  of  my  lending 
you  a  tin  can  with  a  lid  to  carry  the  milk 
home  in?  That  would  not  break,  at  any  rate; 
though  I  would  not  answer  for  the  milk  not 
spilling  if    you    ran   races.      That's  it!" 

lie  had  dropped  his  daughter's  hand,  and 
now  held  out  each  of  h.is  to  the  little  fellows. 
Phillis  and  I  followed,  and  listened  to  the 
prattle  wb.ich  the  minister's  companions  now 
poured  out  to  him,  and  wliich  he  was  evi- 
dently   enjoving.         .\t   a   certain    i)oint,   there 


4©  COUSIN  P  HILL  IS. 

was  a  sudden  burst  of  the  tawny,  ruddy- 
evening  landscape.  The  minister  turned 
around   and  quoted  a  line  or  two  of  Latin. 

"  It's  wonderful,"  said  he,  "  how  exactly 
Virgil  has  hit  the  enduring  epithets,  nearly  two 
thousand  years  ago,  and  in  Italy;  and  yet  how 
it  describes  to  a  T  what  is  now  lying  before  us 

in    the  parish  of    Heathbridge,  county , 

England." 

"  I  dare  say  it  does,"  said  I,  all  aglow  with 
shame,  for  I  had  forgotten  the  little  Latin  I 
ever  knew. 

The  minister  shifted  his  eyes  to  Phillis's 
face;  it  mutely  gave  him  back  the  sympathetic 
appreciation  that  I,  in  my  ignorance,  could  not 
bestow. 

"Oh!  this  is  worse  than  the  catechism," 
thought  I ;  "  that  was  only  remembering 
words." 

"  Phillis,  lass,  thou  must  go  home  with 
these  lads,  and  tell  their  mother  all  about  the 
race  and  the  milk.  Mammy  must  always  know 
the  truth,"  now  speaking  to  the  children. 
"And  tell  her,  too,  from   me,  that   I   have  got 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         4 1 


the  best  birch  rod  in  the  parish;  and  that  if  she 
ever  thinks  her  children  want  a  flogging  she 
must  bring  them  to  me,  and,  if  I  think  they 
deserve  it,  I'll  give  it  them  better  than  she  can." 
So  Phillis  led  the  children  toward  the  dairy, 
somewhere  in  the  back  yard,  and  I  followed 
the  minister  in  through  the  "  curate  "  into  the 
house-place. 

"  Their  mother,"  said  he,  "  is  a  bit  of  a 
vixen,  and  apt  to  punish  her  children  without 
rhyme  or  reason.  I  try  to  keep  the  parish  rod 
as  well  as  the  parish  bull." 

He  sat  down  in  the  three-cornered  chair  by 
the  fireside,  and  looked  around  the  empty 
room. 

"Where's  the  missus?"  said  he  to  himself. 
Hut  she  was  there  in  a  minute;  it  was  her 
regular  plan  to  give  him  his  welcome  home  — 
by  a  look,  by  a  touch,  nothing  more  —  as  soon 
as  she  could  after  his  return,  and  he  had  missed 
her  now.  Regardless  of  my  presence,  he  went 
<ner  the  dav's  doings  to  her;  and  then,  getting 
up,  he  said  he  must  go  and  make  himself 
"reverend,"    and    that    then  we   would    have  a 


42  CO  us  IN  PIIILLIS. 

cup  of  tea  in  the  parlor.  The  parlor  was  a 
large  room  with  two  casemented  windows  on 
the  other  side  of  the  broad  flagged  passage 
leading  from  the  rector-door  to  the  wide  stair- 
case, with  its  shallow,  polished  oaken  steps,  on 
which  no  carpet  was  ever  laid.  The  parlor  floor 
was  covered  in  the  middle  by  a  home-made 
carpeting  of  needlework  and  list.  One  or  two 
quaint  family  pictures  of  the  Holman  family 
hung  around  the  walls;  the  fire-grate  and  irons 
were  much  ornamented  with  brass;  and  on  a 
table  against  the  wall  between  the  windows,  a 
a  great  beau-pot  of  flowers  was  placed  upon 
the  folio  volumes  of  Matthew  Henry's  Bible. 
It  was  a  compliment  to  me  to  use  this  room, 
and  I  tried  to  be  grateful  for  it;  but  we  never 
had  our  meals  there  after  the  first  day,  and  I 
was  glad  of  it;  for  the  large  house-place,  living- 
room,  dining-room,  whichever  you  might  like 
to  call  it,  was  twice  as  comfortable  and  cheer- 
ful. There  was  a  rug  in  front  of  the  great 
large  fireplace,  and  an  oven  by  the  grate,  and  a 
crook,  with  the  kettle  hanging  from  it,  over  the 
bright  wood-fire;  everything  that  ought  to  be 


A   STO/iJ'  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         43 


black  and  polished  in  that  room  was  black  and 
polished;  and  the  flags, and  window  curtains,  and 
such  thing's  as  were  to  be  white  and  clean  were 
just  spotless  in  their  purity.  Opposite  to  the 
fireplace,  extending  the  whole  length  of  the 
room,  was  an  oaken  shovel-board,  with  the 
right  incline  for  a  skillful  player  to  send  the 
weights  into  the  prescribed  space.  There  were 
baskets  of  white  work  about,  and  a  small  shelf 
of  books  hung  against  the  wall,  books  used  for 
reading,  and  not  for  propping  up  a  beau-pot  of 
flowers.  I  took  down  one  or  two  of  those 
books  once  when  I  was  left  alone  in  the  house- 
place  on  the  first  evening  —  Virgil,  Cicsai^,  a 
Greek  grammar  —  oh,  dear!  ah  me!  and  Phillis 
Holman's  name  in  each  of  them!  I  shut  them 
up,  and  put  them  back  in  their  places,  and 
walked  as  far  away  from  the  booksiielf  as  I 
could.  Yes,  and  I  gave  my  cousin  Phillis  a 
wide  berth,  although  she  was  sitting  at  her 
work  ([uietly  enough,  and  her  hair  was  looking 
more  golden,  her  dark  c\clasiies  longer,  her 
round  pillar  of  a  throat  wliilcr  tiian  ever.  We 
iiad    done    tea,   and    we   hatl    returned    into   the 


44  COUSIN  Pff/LLTS. 

house-place  that  the  minister  might  smoke  his 
pipe  without  fear  of  contaminating  the  drab 
damask  window-curtains  of  the  parlor.  He 
had  made  himself  "  reverend  "  by  putting  on 
one  of  the  voluminous  white  muslin  neck- 
cloths that  I  had  seen  cousin  Holman  ironing 
the  first  visit  I  had  paid  to  the  Hope  Farm,  and 
by  making  one  or  two  other  unimportant 
changes  in  his  dress.  He  sat  looking  steadily 
at  me,  but  whether  he  saw  me  or  not  I  can  not 
tell.  At  the  time  I  fancied  that  he  did,  and 
was  gauging  me  in  some  unknown  fashion  in 
his  secret  mind.  Every  now  and  then  he  took 
his  pipe  out  of  his  mouth,  knocked  out  the 
ashes,  and  asked  me  some  fresh  question.  As 
long  as  these  related  to  my  acquirements  or  my 
reading,  I  shuffled  uneasily  and  did  not  know 
what  to  answer.  By-and-by  he  got  around  to 
the  more  practical  subject  of  railroads,  and  on 
this  I  was  more  at  home.  I  really  had  taken 
an  interest  in  my  work;  nor  would  Mr.  Holds- 
worth,  indeed,  have  kept  me  in  his  employment 
if  I  had  not  given  my  mind  as  well  as  my  time 
to  it;  and  I  was,  besides,  full  of  the  difficulties 


A   STOR7'  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         45 

which  beset  us  just  then,  owing  to  our  not 
being  able  to  find  a  steady  bottom  on  the 
Heathbiidge  moss,  over  which  we  wished  to 
carry  our  Hne.  In  the  midst  of  all  my  eager- 
ness in  speaking  about  this,  I  could  not  help 
being  struck  with  the  extreme  pertinence  of  his 
questions.  I  do  not  mean  that  he  did  not  show 
ignorance  of  many  of  the  details  of  engineer- 
ing; that  was  to  have  been  expected;  but  on  the 
premises  he  had  got  hold  of,  lie  thought  clearly 
and  reasoned  logically.  Phillis  —  so  like  him 
as  she  was  both  in  body  and  mind  —  kept 
stopping  at  her  work  and  looking  at  me,  trying 
to  fully  understand  all  that  I  said.  I  felt  she 
did;  and  perhaps  it  made  me  take  more  pains 
in  using  clear  expressions,  and  arranging  my 
words,  than  I  otherwise  should. 

"She  shall  see  I  know  something  worth 
knowing,  though  it  mayn't  be  her  dead-and- 
gone  languages,"  thought  I. 

"T  sec,"  said  the  minister,  at  length.  "I 
understand  it  all.  You've  a  clear,  good  head 
of  xouY  own,  mv  lad,  —  choose  how  you  came 
by  it." 


46  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

"  From  my  father,"  said  I  proudly.  "  Have 
you  not  heard  of  his  discovery  of  a  new 
method  of  shuntin<^?  It  was  in  the  Gazette. 
It  was  patented.  I  thought  every  one  had 
heard  of  Manning's  patent  winch." 

"  We  don't  know  who  invented  the  alpha- 
bet," said  he,  half  smiling,  and  taking  up  his 
pipe. 

"  No,  I  dare  say  not,  sir,"  replied  I,  half 
offended;  "that's  so  long  ago." 

Puff  — puff  — puff. 

"  But  your  father  must  be  a  notable  man. 
I  heard  of  him  once  before;  and  it  is  not 
many  a  one  fifty  miles  away  whose  fame 
reaches  Ileathbridge  " 

"  My  father  is  a  notable  man,  sir.  It  is  not 
me  that  says  so;  it  is  Mr.  Holdsworth,  and  — 
and  everybody." 

"  He  is  right  to  stand  up  for  his  father," 
said  cousin  Ilolman,  as  if  she  were  pleading 
for  me. 

I  chafed  inwardly,  thinking  that  my  father 
needed  no  one  to  stand  up  for  him.  He  was 
man  sufficient  for  himself. 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         47 

"  Yes  —  he  is  riglit,"  said  the  minister, 
placidly.  "  Right,  because  it  comes  from  his 
heart  —  right,  too,  as  I  believe,  in  point  of  fact. 
Else  there  is  many  a  young  cockerel  that  will 
stand  upon  a  dunghill  and  crow  about  his 
father,  by  way  of  making  his  own  plumage 
to  shine.  I  should  like  to  know  thy  father," 
he  went  on,  turning  straight  to  me,  with  a 
kindly,  frank  look  in  his  eyes. 

But  I  was  vexed,  and  would  take  no  notice. 
Presently,  having  finished  his  pipe,  he  got  up 
and  left  the  room.  Phillis  put  her  work  hastily 
down,  and  went  after  him.  In  a  minute  or 
two  she  returned  and  sat  down  again.  Not 
long  after,  and  before  I  had  quite  recovered 
my  good  temper,  he  opened  the  door  out  of 
which  he  had  passed,  and  called  to  me  to  come 
to  him.  I  went  across  a  narrow  stone  passage 
into  a  strange,  many-cornered  room,  not  ten 
feet  in  area,  part  study,  part  counting-house, 
looking  into  the  farmyaixl;  with  a  desk  to  sit 
at,  a  desk  to  stand  at,  a  spittoon,  a  set  of  shelves 
with  old  divinitv  books  u])on  them;  another, 
smaller,  filled  with  books  on  farriery,  farming. 


4S  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

manures,  and  such  subjects,  with  pieces  of 
paper  containing  memoranda  stuck  against  the 
whitewashed  walls  with  wafers,  nails,  pins, 
anything  that  came  readiest  to  hand;  a  box  of 
carpenter's  tools  on  the  floor,  and  some  manu- 
scripts in  shorthand  on  the  desk. 

He  turned  around  half  laughing.  "  That 
foolish  girl  of  mine  thinks  I  have  vexed 
you" — putting  his  large,  powerful  hand  on 
my  shoulder,  "  '  Nay,'  says  I ;  '  kindly  meant 
is  kindly  taken' — is  it  not  so?" 

"  It  was  not  quite,  sir,"  replied  I,  van- 
quished by  his  manner;  "but  it  shall  be  in 
future." 

"  Come,  that's  right.  You  and  I  shall  be 
friends.  Indeed,  it's  not  many  a  one  I  would 
bring  in  here.  But  I  was  reading  a  book  this 
morning,  and  I  could  not  make  it  out;  it  is  a 
book  that  was  left  here  by  mistake  one  day; 
I  had  subscribed  to  Brother  Robinson's  sermons; 
and  I  was  glad  to  see  this  instead  of  them,  for 
sermons  though  they  be,  they're  .  .  .  well, 
never  mind !  I  took  'em  both,  and  made  my  old 
coat  do  a  bit   longer ;  but  all's   fish  that  comes 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         49 

to  my  net.  I  have  fewer  books  than  leisure  to 
read  them,  and  I  have  a  prodigious  big  appe- 
tite.    Here  it  is." 

It  was  a  vohime  of  stiff  mechanics,  involv- 
ing many  technical  terms,  and  some  rather 
deep  mathematics.  These  last,  which  would 
have  puzzled  me,  seemed  easy  enough  to  him ; 
all  that  he  wanted  was  the  explanations  of  the 
technical  words,  which  I  could  easily  give. 

While  he  was  looking  through  the  book  to 
find  the  places  where  he  had  been  puzzled,  my 
wandering  eve  caught  on  some  of  the  papers 
on  the  wall,  and  I  could  not  help  reading  one, 
which  has  stuck  by  me  ever  since.  At  first 
it  seemed  a  kind  of  weekly  diary;  but  then  I 
saw  that  the  seven  days  were  portioned  out  for 
special  prayers  and  inteicessions:  Monday  for 
his  family,  Tuesday  foi"  enemies,  Wednesday 
for  the  Independent  churches,  Thursday  for  all 
other  churclics,  Fridav  for  persons  afflicted, 
Saturday  for  his  own  soul,  Sunday  for  all 
wanderers  and  sinners,  that  they  might  be 
brought   hcMnc   to   the   fold. 

Wc  were  called  back  into  tlie  house-place 
4 


50  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

to  have  supper.  A  door  opening  into  the  kitchen 
was  opened;  and  all  stood  up  in  both  rooms, 
while  the  minister,  tall,  large,  one  hand  resting 
on  the  spread  table,  the  other  lifted  up,  said, 
in  the  deep  voice  that  would  have  been  loud 
had  it  not  been  so  full  and  rich,  but  with  the 
peculiar  accent  or  twang  that  I  believe  is  con- 
sidered devout  by  some  people,  "  Whether  we 
eat  or  drink,  or  whatsoever  we  do,  let  us  do  all 
to  the  glory  of  God." 

The  supper  was  an  immense  meat-pie.  We 
of  the  house-place  were  helped  first;  then  the 
minister  hit  the  handle  of  his  buck  horn  carv- 
ing-knife on   the  table  once,  and   said, — 

"  Now  or  never,"  which  meant,  did  any  of 
us  want  anv  more;  and  when  we  had  all  de- 
clined, cither  by  silence  or  by  words,  he  knocked 
twice  with  his  knife  on  the  table,  and  Bett\- 
came  in  through  the  open  door,  and  carried  off 
the  great  dish  to  the  kitchen,  where  an  old  man 
and  a  young  one,  and  a  help-girl,  were  await- 
ing their  meal. 

"  Shut  the  door  if  you  will,"  said  the  min- 
ister to  Betty. 


A   STORl'  OF  ENGLfSH  LOVE.         5 1 

"  That's  in  honor  of  vou,"  said  cousin  Hol- 
man,  in  a  tone  of  satisfaction,  as  the  door  was 
shut. 

"  When  we've  no  stranger  with  us,  the  min- 
ister is  so  fond  of  keeping  the  door  open,  and 
talking  to  the  men  and  maids,  just  as  much 
as  to  PhiUis  and  me." 

"  It  brings  us  all  together  like  a  household 
just  before  we  meet  as  a  household  in  prayer," 
said  he,  in  explanation.  "  But  to  go  back  to 
what  we  were  talking  about  —  can  you  tell  me 
of  any  simple  book  on  dynamics  that  I  could 
put  in  my  pocket,  and  study  a  little  at  leisure 
times   in  the  day  ?  " 

"  Leisure  times,  father  ?  "  said  Phillis,  with 
a  nearer  aj^proach  to  a  smile  than  I  had  yet 
seen   on   her   face. 

"Ves;  leisure  times,  daughter.  There  is 
many  an  odd  minute  lost  in  waiting  for  other 
folk;  and  now  that  railroads  are  coming  so 
iieai"  us,  it  bch()()\cs  us  to  know  something  aiK)ut 
them." 

I  thought  of  his  own  description  of  his 
"  prodigious  big   appetite"   for   learning.      And 


52  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

he  had  a  good  appetite  of  his  own  for  the  more 
material  victuals  before  him.  But  I  saw,  or 
fancied  I  saw,  that  he  had  some  rule  for  him- 
self in  the  matter  both  of  food  and  drink. 

As  soon  as  supper  was  done  the  household 
assembled  for  prayer.  It  was  a  long  impromptu 
evening  prayer;  and  it  would  have  seemed 
desultory  enough  had  I  not  had  a  glimpse  of 
the  kind  of  day  that  preceded  it,  and  so  been 
able  to  find  a  clue  to  the  thoughts  that  preceded 
the  disjointed  utterances;  for  he  kept  there, 
kneeling  down  in  the  center  of  a  circle,  his 
eyes  shut,  his  outstretched  hands  pressed  palm 
to  palm  —  sometimes  with  a  long  pause  of 
silence,  as  if  waiting  to  see  if  there  was  any- 
thing else  he  wished  to  "  lay  before  the  Lord  " 
(to  use  his  own  expression)  —  before  he  con- 
cluded with  the  blessing.  He  prayed  for  the 
cattle  and  live  creatures,  rather  to  mv  surprise; 
for  my  attention  had  begun  to  wander,  till  it 
was  recalled  by  the  familiar  words. 

And  here  I  must  not  forget  to  name  an  odd 
incident  at  the  conclusion  of  the  prayer,  and 
before  we  had  risen  from  our  knees    (indeed 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         53 

before  Betty  was  well  awake,  for  she  made  a 
nightly  practice  of  having  a  sound  nap,  her 
weary  head  lying  on  her  stalwart  arms);  the 
minister,  still  kneeling  in  our  midst,  but  with 
his  eyes  wide  open,  and  his  arms  dropped  by 
his  side,  spoke  to  the  elder  man,  who  turned 
around  on  his  knees  to  attend.  "John,  didst 
see  that  Daisy  had  her  warm  mash  to-night; 
for  we  must  not  neglect  the  means,  John --two 
quarts  of  gruel,  a  spoonful  of  ginger,  and  a  gill 
of  beer  —  the  poor  beast  needs  it,  and  I  fear  it 
slipped  out  of  mv  mind  to  tell  thee;  and  here 
was  I  asking  a  blessing  and  neglecting  the 
means,  which  is  a  mockery,"  said  he,  dropping 
his  voice. 

Before  we  went  to  bed  he  told  me  he 
should  see  little  or  nothing  more  of  me  during 
my  visit,  which  was  to  end  on  Sunday  even- 
ing, as  he  always  gave  up  both  Saturday  and 
Sabbath  to  liis  work  in  the  ministry.  I  re- 
membered that  the  landlord  at  the  inn  had  told 
me  this  on  the  day  when  I  first  iiifiuired  about 
these  new  relations  of  mine;  and  I  did  not  dis- 
like   the   opportunity    which    I   saw   would    be 


54  COUSIN  P HILL  IS. 


afforded  me  of  becoming  more  acquainted  with 
cousin  Holman  and  Phillis,  though  I  earnestly 
hoped  that  the  latter  would  not  attack  me  on 
the  subject  of  the  dead  languages. 

I  went  to  bed  and  dreamed  that  I  was  as 
tall  as  cousin  Phillis,  and  had  a  sudden  and 
miraculous  growth  of  whisker,  and  a  still  more 
miraculous  acquaintance  with  Latin  and  Greek. 
Alas!  I  wakened  up  still  a  short,  beardless 
lad,  with  "  tempiis  fugit "  for  my  sole  remem- 
brance of  the  little  Latin  I  had  once  learned. 
While  I  was  dressing,  a  bright  thought  came 
over  me:  I  could  question  cousin  Phillis,  in- 
stead of  her  questioning  me,  and  so  manage  to 
keejD  the  choice  of  the  subjects  of  conversation 
in  my  own  power. 

Early  as  it  was,  everyone  had  breakfasted, 
and  my  basin  of  bread  and  milk  was  put  on  the 
oven  top  to  await  my  coming  down.  Every- 
one was  gone  about  their  work.  The  first  to 
come  into  the  house-place  was  Phillis  with  a 
basket  of  eggs.  Faithful  to  my  resolution,  I 
asked,— 

"What  are  those?" 


A  ST  on  2^  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         55 

She  looked  at  me  for  a  moment,  and  then 
said  gravely  — 

"Potatoes!" 

"No!  they  are  not,"  said  I.  "They  are 
eggs.  What  do  you  mean  by  saying  they  are 
potatoes?" 

"What  do  you  mean  by  asking  me  what 
they  were,  when  they  were  plain  to  be  seen  ?  " 
retorted  she. 

We  were  both  getting  a  little  angry  with 
each  other. 

"  I  don't  know.  I  wanted  to  begin  to  talk 
to  you;  and  I  was  afraid  you  would  talk  to  me 
about  books  as  you  did  yesterday.  I  have  not 
read  much,  and  you  and  the  minister  have  read 
so  much." 

"  I  have  not,"  said  she.  "  But  you  are  our 
guest;  and  mother  says  I  must  make  it  pleasant 
to  vou.  We  won't  talk  about  books.  What 
must  we  talk  about?" 

"1  don't  know.     How  old  arc  you?" 

"  wSeventcen     last     May.  How     old     are 

you?" 

"  I  am  nineteen.      Oldci-  than  you  by  nearly 


56  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

two  years,"  said  I,  drawing  myself  up  to  my 
full  height. 

"  I  should  not  have  thought  you  were  above 
sixteen,"  she  replied,  as  quietly  as  if  she  were 
not  saying  the  most  provoking  thing  she  possi- 
bly could.     Then  came  a  pause. 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  now? "  asked  I. 

"I  should  be  dusting  the  bedchambers;  but 
mother  said  I  had  better  stay  and  make  it 
pleasant  to  you,"  said  she,  a  little  plaintively, 
as  if  dusting  rooms  was  far  the  easiest  task. 

"Will  you  take  me  to  see  the  live  stock?  I 
like  animals,  though  I  don't  know  much  about 
them." 

"  Oh,  do  you?  I  am  so  glad!  I  was  afraid 
you  would  not  like  animals,  as  you  did  not  like 
books." 

I  wondered  why  she  said  this.  I  think  it 
was  because  she  had  begun  to  fancy  all  our 
tastes  must  be  dissimilar.  We  went  together 
all  through  the  farmyard;  we  fed  the  poultry, 
she  kneeling  down  with  her  pinafore  full  of 
corn  and  meal,  and  tempting  the  little  timid, 
downy  chickens  upon  it,  much  to  the  anxiety 


A  STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.        SI 

of  the  fussy,  ruffled  hen,  their  mother.  She 
called  to  the  pigeons,  who  fluttered  down  at 
the  sound  of  her  voice.  She  and  I  examined 
the  great  sleek  cart-horses;  sympathized  in  our 
dislike  of  pigs;  fed  the  calves;  coaxed  the  sick 
cow,  Daisy;  and  admired  the  others  out  at  pas- 
ture; and  came  back  tired  and  hungry  and 
dirty  at  dinner-time,  having  quite  forgotten 
that  there  were  such  things  as  dead  languages, 
and  consequently  capital  friends. 


PART   II. 


COUSIN  HOLMAN  gave  me  the  weekly 
county  newspaper  to  read  aloud  to  her, 
while  she  mended  stockings  out  of  a  high 
piled-up  basket,  Phillis  helping  her  mother.  I 
read  and  read,  unregardful  of  the  words  I  was 
uttering,  thinking  of  all  manner  of  other  things; 
of  the  bright  color  of  Phillis'  hair,  as  the 
afternoon  sun  fell  on  her  bending  head;  of  the 
silence  of  the  house,  which  enabled  me  to  hear 
the  double  tick  of  the  old  clock  which  stood 
halfway  up  the  stairs;  of  the  variety  of  inartic- 
ulate noises  which  cousin  Holman  made  while 
I  read,  to  show  her  sympathy,  wonder,  or 
horror  at  the  newspaper  intelligence.  The 
tranquil  monotony  of  that  hour  made  me  feel 
as  if  I  had  lived  forever,  and  should  live  for- 
ever   droning    out    paragraphs    in    that   warm 

S8 


A   STORT  OF  EXGLISH  LOVE.         59 


sunny  room,  with  my  two  quiet  hearers,  and 
the  curled-up  pussy  cat  sleeping  on  the  hearth- 
rug, and  the  clock  on  the  house-stairs  perpetu- 
ally clicking-  out  the  passage  of  the  moments. 
Hv  and  bv  Betty,  the  servant,  came  to  the  door 
into  the  kitchen,  and  made  a  sign  to  Phillis, 
who  put  her  half-mended  stocking  down,  and 
went  away  to  the  kitchen  without  a  word. 
Looking  at  cousin  Holman  a  minute  or  two 
afterward,  I  saw  that  she  had  dropped  her 
chin  upon  her  breast,  and  had  fallen  fast  asleep. 
I  put  the  newspaper  down,  and  was  nearly 
following  her  example,  when  a  waft  of  air 
from  some  unseen  source  slightly  opened  the 
door  of  communication  with  the  kitchen,  that 
Phillis  must  have  left  unfastened;  and  I  saw 
part  of  her  figure  as  she  sat  bv  the  dresser 
peeling  apples  with  quick  dexterity  of  finger, 
but  with  repeated  turnings  of  her  head  towartl 
some  book  King  on  the  dresser  bv  her.  I 
softly  rose,  and  as  softly  went  into  the  kitchen, 
and  looked  over  her  slioulder;  beff)re  she  was 
aware  of  mv  neighborhood,  1  had  seen  that 
the    book  was    in   a  language  unknown    to   me. 


6o  COUSIN  P  HILL  IS. 

and  the  running  title  was  U Inferno.  Just  as 
I  was  making  out  the  relationship  of  this  word 
to  "  infernal,"  she  started  and  turned  around, 
and,  as  if  continuing  her  thought  as  she  spoke, 
she  sighed  out  — 

'*Oh!  it  is  so  difficult!  Can  you  help  me?" 
putting  her  finger  below  a  line. 

"Me!  I!  Not  I!  I  don't  even  know  what 
language  it  is  in  !  " 

"Don't  you  see  it  is  Dante? "  she  replied, 
almost  petulantly;  she  did  so  want  hel25. 

"  Italian,  then?  "  said  I,  dubiously;  for  I 
was  not  quite  sure. 

"  Yes.  And  I  do  so  want  to  make  it  out. 
Father  can  help  me  a  little,  for  he  knows 
Latin;  but  then  he  has  so  little  time." 

"  You  have  not  much,  I  should  think,  if 
you  have  often  to  try  and  do  two  things  at 
once,  as  you  are  doing  now." 

"Oh!  that's  nothing!  Father  bought  a 
heap  of  old  books  cheap.  And  I  knew  some- 
thing about  Dante  before;  and  I  have  always 
liked  Virgil  so  much!     Paring  apples  is  noth- 


A   STORr  OF  EXGLISH  LOVE.         6i 

ing,  if  I  could  only  make  out  this  old  Italian. 
I  wish  you  knew  it." 

"  I  wish  I  did,"  said  I,  moved  by  her  im- 
petuosity of  tone,  "  If,  now,  only  Mr.  Holds- 
worth  were  here;  he  can  speak  Italian  like 
anything,  I  believe." 

"Who  is  Air.  Holdsworth?"  said  Phillis, 
looking  up. 

"  Oh,  he's  our  head  engineer.  He's  a 
regular  first-rate  fellow!  He  can  do  any- 
thing;" my  hero-worship  and  my  pride  in 
my  chief  all  coming  into  play.  Besides,  if  I 
was  not  clever  and  book-learned  myself,  it  was 
something  to  belong  to  someone  who  was. 

"How  is  it  that  he  s2oeaks  Italian?"  asked 
Phillis. 

"  He  had  to  make  a  raihvav  through  Pictl- 
mont,  which  is  in  Italy,  I  believe;  and  he  had 
to  talk  to  all  the  workmen  in  Italian;  and  I 
have  heard  him  say  tliat  for  nearly  two  years 
lie  had  onh'  Italian  books  to  read  in  the  queer, 
outlandish  places  he  was  in  " 

«Oh,  dear!"    said   Phillis;  "I   wish " 


63  COUSIN  PHTLLIS. 

and  then  she  stopped.  I  was  not  quite  sure 
whether  to  say  the  next  thing  that  came  into 
my  mind;  but  I  said  it. 

"  Could  I  ask  him  anything  about  3'our 
book,  or  your  difficulties?  " 

She   was   silent   for  a  minute  or   two,  and 

then  she  made  reply 

"No!  T  think  not.  Thank  you  very  much, 
though.  I  can  generally  puzzle  a  thing  out 
in  time.  And  then,  perhaps,  I  remember  it 
better  than  if  someone  had  helped  me.  I'll 
put  it  away  now,  and  you  must  move  off,  for 
I've  got  to  make  the  paste  for  the  pies;  we 
always  have  a  cold  dinner  on   Sabbaths." 

"But  I  may  stay  and  help  you,  mayn't  I?" 

"  Oh,  yes;  not  that  you  can  help  at  all,  but 
I  like  to  have  you  with  me." 

I  was  both  flattered  and  annoyed  at  this 
straightforward  avowal.  I  was  pleased  that 
she  liked  me;  but  I  was  young  coxcomb 
enough  to  have  wished  to  plav  the  lover,  and 
I  was  quite  wise  enough  to  perceive  that  if 
she  had  any  idea  of  the  kind  in  her  head  she 
would   never  have  sjDoken   out   so   frankly.     I 


A   STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         63 

comforted  myself  immediately,  however,  by 
finding  out  that  the  grapes  were  sour.  A 
great,  tall  girl  in  a  pinafore,  half  a  head  taller 
than  I  was,  reading  books  that  I  had  never  heard 
of,  and  talking  about  them,  too,  as  of  far  more 
interest  than  any  mere  personal  subjects;  that 
was  the  last  day  on  which  I  ever  thought  of 
my  dear  cousin  Phillis  as  the  possible  mistress 
of  my  heart  and  life.  But  we  were  all  the 
greater  friends  for  this  idea  being  utterly  put 
awav  and  buried  out  of  sight. 

Late  in  the  evening  the  minister  came 
home  from  Hornby.  He  had  been  calling  on 
the  different  memliers  of  his  flock ;  and  un- 
satisfactory work  it  had  proved  to  him,  it 
seemed  from  the  fragments  that  dropped  out 
of   his  thoughts  into  his  talk. 

"I  don't  see  the  men;  thcv  arc  all  at  their 
business,  their  shops,  or  their  warehouses;  tlu'v 
ought  to  be  there.  I  have  no  fault  to  find 
with  them;  onlv  if  a  pastor's  teaching  or 
words  of  admonition  are  good  for  anything, 
they  are  needed  bv  the  men  as  much  as  by 
the   women." 


64  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

"  Cannot  you  go  and  see  them  in  their 
places  of  business,  and  remind  them  of  their 
Christian  privileges  and  duties,  minister?  " 
asked  cousin  Holman,  who  evidently  thought 
that  her  husband's  words  could  never  be  out 
of  place. 

"  No!  "  said  he,  shaking  his  head.  "  I  judge 
them  by  myself.  If  there  are  clouds  in  the 
sky,  and  I  am  getting  in  the  hay  just  ready  for 
loading,  and  rain  sure  to  come  in  the  night,  I 
should  look  ill  upon  brother  Robinson  if  he 
came  into  the  field  to  speak  about  serious  things." 

"  But,  at  any  rate,  father,  you  do  good  to 
the  women,  and  perhaps  they  repeat  what 
you  have  said  to  them  to  their  husbands  and 
children?" 

"  It  is  to  be  hoped  they  do,  for  I  cannot 
reach  the  men  directly;  but  the  women  are 
apt  to  tarry  before  coming  to  me,  to  jDut  on 
ribbons  and  gauds;  as  if  they  could  hear  the 
message  I  bear  to  them    best    in    their  smart 

clothes.       Mrs.    Dobson   to-day Phillis,    I 

am  thankful  thou  dost  not  care  for  the  vani- 
ties of  dress! " 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.  65 

Phillis  reddened  a  little  as  she  said,  in  a 
low,  humble  voice, — 

"  But  I  do,  father,  I'm  afraid.  I  often  wish 
I  could  wear  pretty-colored  ribbons  around  my 
throat  like  the  squire's  daughters." 

"  It's  but  natural,  minister!"  said  his  wife; 
"  I'm  not  above  liking  a  silk  gown  better  than 
a  cotton  one,  myself  I" 

"  The  love  of  dress  is  a  temptation  and  a 
snare,"  said  he,  gravely.  "  The  true  adornment 
is  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit.  And,  wife,"  said 
he,  as  a  sudden  thought  crossed  his  mind,  "  in 
that  matter,  I,  too,  have  sinned.  I  wanted  to 
ask  vou,  could  we  not  sleep  in  the  gray  room, 
instead  of  our  own?" 

"  Sleep  in  the  gray  room  ?  —  change  our 
room  at  this  time  o'  day?"  cousin  Ilolman 
asked,  in  dismay. 

"  Yes,"  said  he.  "  It  would  save  me  from 
a  dailv  temptation  to  anger.  Lo<jk  at  my 
cliini"  he  continued;  "I  cut  it  this  morning — 
I  cut  it  on  Wednesday  when  I  was  shaving; 
I  do  not  know  how  manv  times  I  have  cut 
it  of  late,  and  all  from  impatience  at  see- 
5 


66  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

ing  Timothy  Cooper  at  his  work  in  the 
yard." 

"He's  a  downright  lazy  tyke!"  said  cousin 
Holman.  "  He's  not  worth  his  wages.  There's 
but  httle  he  can  do  and  what  he  can  do  he 
does  badly." 

"  True,"  said  the  minister.  "  But  he  is  but, 
so  to  speak,  a  half-wit;  and  yet  he  has  got  a 
wife  and  children." 

"  More  shame  for  him!  " 

"  But  that  is  past  change.  And  if  I  turn  him 
off,  no  one  else  will  take  him  on.  Yet  I  can- 
not help  watching  him  of  a  morning  as  he  goes 
sauntering  about  his  work  in  the  yard;  and  I 
watch,  and  I  watch,  till  the  old  Adam  rises  strong 
within  me  at  his  lazy  ways,  and  some  day,  I 
am  afraid,  I  shall  go  down  and  send  him  about 
his  business  —  let  alone  the  way  in  which  he 
makes  me  cut  myself  while  I  am  shaving  — 
and  then  his  wife  and  children  will  starve.  I 
wish  we  could  move  to  the  gray  room." 

I  do  not  remember  much  more  of  my  first 
visit  to  the  Hope  Farm.  We  went  to  chapel 
in  Heathbridge,  slowly  and  decorously  walk- 


A   STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         67 

ing  along  the  lanes,  ruddy  and  tawny  with  the 
coloring  of  the  coming  autumn.  The  minister 
walked  a  little  before  us,  his  hands  behind  his 
back,  his  head  bent  down,  thinking  about  the 
discourse  to  be  delivered  to  his  people,  cousin 
Holman  said;  and  we  spoke  low  and  quietly, 
in  order  not  to  interrupt  his  thoughts.  But  I 
could  not  help  noticing  the  respectful  greet- 
ings which  he  received  from  both  rich  and 
poor  as  we  went  along;  greetings  which  he 
acknowledged  with  a  kindly  wave  of  his  hand, 
but  with  no  words  of  reply.  As  we  drew  near 
the  town,  I  could  see  some  of  the  young  fellows 
we  met  cast  admiring  looks  on  Phillis;  and 
that  made  me  look,  too.  vShe  had  on  a  \vhite 
gown,  and  a  short,  black  silk  cloak,  according 
to  the  fashion  of  the  day.  A  straw  bonnet 
with  brown  ribbon  strings;  that  was  all.  But 
what  her  dixvss  wanted  in  color  her  sweet, 
bonny  face  had.  The  walk  made  her  cheeks 
bloom  like  the  rose,  the  \crv  whites  of  her 
eves  had  a  l)Iue  tinge  in  them,  and  her  dark 
evelashes  brought  out  the  depth  of  the  blue 
eves    tliemselves.       Her    yellow    hair   was    put 


68  COUSIN  P II ILL  IS. 

away  as  straight  as  its  natural  curliness  would 
allow.  If  she  did  not  perceive  the  admiration 
she  excited,  I  am  sure  cousin  Holman  did;  for 
she  looked  as  fierce  and  as  proud  as  ever  her 
quiet  face  could  look,  guarding  her  treasure, 
and  yet  glad  to  perceive  that  others  could  see 
that  it  was  a  treasure.  That  afternoon  I  had 
to  return  to  Eltham  to  be  ready  for  the  next 
day's  work.  I  found  out  afterward  that  the 
minister  and  his  family  were  all  "  exercised  in 
spirit,"  as  to  whether  they  did  well  in  asking 
me  to  repeat  my  visits  at  the  Hope  Farm,  see- 
ing that  of  necessity  I  must  return  to  Eltham 
on  the  sabbath-day.  However,  they  did  go  on 
asking  me,  and  I  went  on  visiting  them,  when- 
ever my  other  engagements  permitted  me,  Mr. 
Holdsworth  being  in  this  case,  as  in  all,  a  kind 
and  indulgent  friend.  Nor  did  my  new  ac- 
quaintances oust  him  from  my  strong  regard 
and  admiration.  I  had  room  in  my  heart  for 
all,  I  am  happy  to  say,  and,  as  far  as  I  can  re- 
member, I  kept  praising  each  to  the  other  in  a 
manner  Avhich,  if  I  had  been  an  older  man, 
living   more   amongst  people   of    the   world,  I 


A   STOR7'  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         69 

should  have  thought  unwise,  as  well  as  a  little 
ridiculous.  It  was  unwise,  certainly,  as  it  was 
almost  sure  to  cause  disappointment  if  ever 
they  did  become  acquainted;  and  perhaps  it 
was  ridiculous,  though  I  do  not  think  we  any 
of  us  thought  it  so  at  the  time.  The  minister 
used  to  listen  to  my  accounts  of  Mr.  Holds- 
worth's  many  accomplishments  and  various 
adventures  in  travel  with  the  truest  interest, 
and  most  kindly  good  faith;  and  Mr.  Holds- 
worth  in  return  liked  to  hear  about  my  visits 
to  the  farm,  and  description  of  my  cousin's  life 
there  —  liked  it,  I  mean,  as  much  as  he  liked 
anvthing  that  was  merely  narrative,  without 
leading  to  action. 

So  I  w^ent  to  the  farm  certainly,  on  an 
average,  once  a  month  during  that  autumn; 
tlie  course  of  life  there  was  so  peaceful  and 
([uiet,  that  I  can  only  remember  one  small 
event,  and  that  was  one  that  I  think  I  took 
more  notice  of  than  an\-one  else:  I'liillis  left 
off  \vearing  the  pinafores  that  had  always  been 
so  oltnoxioiis  to  me,  1  do  not  know  whv  they 
were  banished,  but  on  one  of  my  visits  1  found 


70  COUSIN  PHIL  LIS. 

them  replaced  by  pretty  linen  aprons  in  the 
morning,  and  a  black  silk  one  in  the  afternoon. 
And  the  blue  cotton  gown  became  a  brown 
stuff  one  as  winter  drew  on;  this  sounds  like 
some  book  I  once  read,  in  which  a  migration 
from  the  blue  l)ed  to  the  brown  was  spoken  of 
as  a  great  family  event. 

Toward  Christmas  my  dear  father  came 
to  see  me,  and  to  consult  Mr.  Holdsworth 
about  the  improvement  which  has  since  been 
known  as  "  Manning's  driving  wheel."  Mr. 
Holdsworth,  as  I  think  I  have  before  said, 
had  a  very  great  regard  for  my  father,  who 
iiad  been  employed  in  the  same  great  machine- 
shop  in  which  Mr.  Holdsworth  had  served 
his  apprenticeship;  and  he  and  my  father  had 
many  mutual  jokes  about  one  of  these  gentle- 
men-apprentices who  used  to  set  about  his 
smith's  work  in  white  wash-leather  gloves, 
for  fear  of  spoiling  his  hands.  Mr.  Holds- 
worth  often  spoke  to  me  about  my  father  as 
having  the  same  kind  of  genius  for  mechan- 
ical invention  as  that  of  George  Stephenson, 
and   my  father  had  come  over  now  to  consult 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         71 

him  about  several  improvements,  as  well  as 
an  offer  of  partnership.  It  was  a  great  pleas- 
ure to  me  to  see  the  mutual  regai'd  of  these 
two  men.  Mr.  Holdsworth,  young,  hand- 
some, keen,  well-dressed,  an  object  of  admira- 
tion to  all  the  youth  of  Eltham;  my  father,  in 
his  decent  but  unfashionable  Sunday  clothes, 
his  plain,  sensible  face  full  of  hard  lines,  the 
marks  of  toil  and  thought, —  his  hands,  black- 
ened beyond  the  power  of  soap  and  water 
by  years  of  labor  in  the  foundry ;  speaking  a 
strong  Northern  dialect,  while  Mr.  Holds- 
worth  had  a  long,  soft  drawl  in  his  voice,  as 
many  of  the  wSoutherners  have,  and  was  reck- 
oned  in   Eltham   to  give   himself    airs. 

Although  most  of  my  father's  leisure  time 
was  occupied  with  conversations  about  the 
business  I  have  mentioned,  he  felt  that  he 
ought  not  to  l^>ave  Eltham  without  going  to 
pay  his  respects  to  the  relations  who  had 
been  so  kind  to  his  son.  So  he  and  I  ran  up 
on  an  engine  along  the  incomplete  line  as 
far  as  Ileatlibridge,  and  went,  by  invitation, 
to    spend    a    day  at   the   farm. 


72  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

It  was  odd  and  yet  pleasant  to  me  to  per- 
ceive how  these  two  men,  each  having  led 
up  to  this  point  such  totally  dissimilar  lives, 
seemed  to  come  together  by  instinct,  after 
one  quiet,  straight  look  into  each  other's  faces. 
My  father  was  a  thin,  wiry  man  of  five  foot 
seven;  the  minister  was  a  broad-shouldered, 
fresh-colored  man  of  six  foot  one;  they  were 
neither  of  them  great  talkers  in  general  — 
perhaps  the  minister  the  most  so  — but  they 
spoke  much  to  each  other.  My  father  went 
into  the  fields  with  the  minister;  I  think  I 
see  him  now,  with  his  hands  behind  his  back, 
listening  intently  to  all  explanations  of  tillage, 
and  the  different  processes  of  farming;  occa- 
sionally taking  up  an  implement,  as  if  un- 
consciously, and  examining  it  with  a  critical 
eye,  and  now  and  then  asking  a  question, 
which  I  could  see  was  considered  as  j^ertinent 
by  his  companion.  Then  we  returned  to 
look  at  the  cattle,  housed  and  bedded  in  ex- 
pectation of  the  snow-storm  hanging  black 
on  the  western  horizon,  and  my  father  learned 
the   points   of   a   cow  with   as   much    attention 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         73 

as  if  he  meant  to  turn  farmer.  He  had  his 
little  hook  that  he  used  for  mechanical  mem- 
oranda and  measurements  in  his  pocket,  and 
he  took  it  out  to  write  down  "  straight  back," 
"  small  muzzle,"  *'  deep  barrel,"  and  I  know 
not  what  else,  under  the  head  "cow."  He 
was  very  critical  on  a  turnip-cutting  machine, 
the  clumsiness  of  which  first  incited  him  to 
talk;  and  when  we  went  into  the  house  he 
sat  thinking  and  quiet  for  a  bit,  while  Phillis 
and  her  mother  made  the  last  preparations 
for  tea,  with  a  little  unheeded  apology  from 
cousin  Holman,  because  we  were  not  sitting 
in  the  best  pai-lc^i-,  which  she  thought  might 
be  chilly  on  so  cold  a  night.  I  wanted  noth- 
ing better  than  the  blazing,  crackling  fire  that 
sent  a  glow  over  all  the  house-place,  and 
wai"med  the  snowy  flags  under  our  feet  till 
they  seemed  to  have  more  heat  than  the  crim- 
son rug  right  in  front  of  the  fire.  .After  tea, 
as  Phillis  aiul  I  were  talking  togetlier  very 
happilv,  I  heard  an  iirepressible  exclamation 
from   cousin    Holman, — 

"  Whatever  is  the  man  about!" 


74  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

And  on  looking  around,  I  saw  my  father 
taking  a  straight  burning  stick  out  of  the  fire, 
and  after  waiting  for  a  minute,  and  examin- 
ing the  charred  end  to  see  if  it  was  fitted  for 
his  purpose,  he  went  to  the  hardwood  dresser, 
scoured  to  the  last  pitch  of  whiteness  and 
cleanliness,  and  began  drawing  with  the  stick; 
the  best  substitute  for  chalk  or  charcoal  within 
his  reach,  for  his  pocket-book  pencil  was  not 
strong  or  bold  enough  for  his  purpose. 
When  he  had  done,  he  began  to  explain  his 
new  model  of  a  turnip-cutting  machine  to  the 
minister,  who  had  been  watching  him  in 
silence  all  the  time.  Cousin  Holman  had,  in 
the  meantime,  taken  a  duster  out  of  a  drawer, 
and,  under  pretense  of  being  as  much  inter- 
ested as  her  husband  in  the  drawing,  was 
secretly  trying  on  an  outside  mark  how 
easily  it  w^ould  come  off,  and  whether  it  would 
leave  her  dresser  as  white  as  before.  Then 
Phillis  was  sent  for  the  book  on  dynamics, 
about  which  I  had  been  consulted  during  my 
first  visit,  and  my  father  had  to  explain  many 
difficulties,  which   he  did   in   language  as  clear 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         75 

as  his  mind,  making  drawings  with  his  stick 
wherever  they  were  needed  as  illustrations, 
the  minister  sitting  with  his  massive  head  rest- 
ing on  his  hands,  his  elbows  on  the  table, 
almost  unconscious  of  Phillis,  leaning  over 
and  listening  greedily,  with  her  hand  on  his 
shoulder,  sucking  in  information  like  her 
father's  own  daughter.  I  was  rather  sorry 
for  cousin  Holman;  I  had  been  so  once  or 
twice  before;  for  do  what  she  would  she  was 
completely  unable  even  to  understand  the 
pleasure  her  husband  and  daughter  took  in 
intellectual  pursuits,  much  less  to  care  in  the 
least  herself  for  the  pursuits  themselves,  and 
was  thus  unavoidably  thrown  out  of  some  of 
their  interests.  I  had  once  or  twice  thought 
she  was  a  little  jealous  of  her  own  child,  as  a 
fitter  companion  for  her  husband  than  she  was 
herself;  and  I  faticied  the  minister  liimself 
was  aware  of  this  feeling,  for  I  had  noticed 
an  occasional  sudden  change  of  subject,  and  a 
tenderness  of  appeal  in  his  voice  as  he  spoke 
to  her,  which  always  made  her  look  contented 
and  peaceful  again.     1  do  not  think  that  Phillis 


7^  COUSIN  P/IILL/S. 

ever  perceived  these  little  shadows;  in  the  first 
place,  she  had  such  complete  reverence  for  her 
parents  that  she  listened  to  them  both  as  if 
they  had  been  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul;  and  be- 
sides, she  was  always  too  much  engrossed  with 
any  matter  in  hand  to  think  about  other  people's 
manners  and  looks. 

This  night  I  could  see,  though  she  did  not, 
how  much  she  was  winning  on  my  father.  She 
asked  a  few  questions  which  showed  that  she 
had  followed  his  explanations  up  to  that  point; 
possibly,  too,  her  unusual  beauty  might  have 
something  to  do  with  his  favorable  impression 
of  her;  but  he  made  no  scruple  of  expressing 
his  admiration  of  her  to  her  father  and  mother 
in  her  absence  from  the  room ;  and  from  that 
evening  I  date  a  project  of  his  which  came  out 
to  me  a  day  or  two  afterward,  as  we  sat  in  my 
little  three-cornered  room  in  Eltham. 

"  Paul,"  he  began,  "  I  never  thought  to  be 
a  rich  man;  but  I  think  it's  coming  upon  me. 
Some  folk  are  making  a  deal  of  my  new 
machine"  (calling  it  by  its  technical  name), 
"  and   Ellison,  of   the  Borough   Green  Works, 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.  77 

has  gone  so  far  as  to  ask  me  to  be  his 
partner." 

"Mr.  ElHson,  the  Justice!  —  who  lives  in 
King  Street?  why,  he  drives  his  carriage!" 
said  I,  doubting,  yet  exultant. 

"  Ay,  lad,  John  Ellison.  But  that's  no  sign 
that  I  shall  drive  my  carriage.  Though  I 
should  like  to  save  thy  mother  walking,  for 
she's  not  so  young  as  she  was.  But  that's  a 
long  way  off,  anvhow.  I  reckon  I  should  start 
with  a  third  profit.  It  might  be  seven  hun- 
dred, or  it  might  be  more.  I  should  like  to 
have  the  power  to  work  out  some  fancies  o' 
mine.  I  care  for  that  much  more  than  for  th' 
brass.  And  Ellison  has  no  lads,  and  by  nature 
the  business  would  come  to  thee  in  course  o' 
time.  Ellison's  lasses  are  but  bits  o'  things, 
and  are  not  like  to  come  bv  husbands  just  yet; 
and  when  they  do,  mav  be  they'll  not  be  in  the 
mechanical  line.  It  will  be  an  opening  for 
thee,  lad,  if  thcni  art  stead}-.  Thou'rt  not  great 
shakes,  I  know,  in  th'  inventing  line;  but 
manv  a  one  gets  on  bettei"  without  having 
fancies    for    somethin<r    he    does    not    sec    and 


78  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

never  has  seen.  I'm  right  down  glad  to  see 
that  mother's  cousins  are  such  uncommon  folk 
for  sense  and  goodness.  I  have  taken  the 
minister  to  my  heart  like  a  brother;  and  she  is 
a  womanly,  quiet  sort  of  a  body.  And  I'll  tell 
you  frank,  Paul,  it  will  be  a  happy  day  for  me 
if  ever  you  can  come  and  tell  me  that  Phillis 
Holman  is  like  to  be  my  daughter.  I  think  if 
that  lass  had  not  a  penny,  she  would  be  the 
making  of  a  man;  and  she'll  have  yon  house 
and  lands,  and  you  may  be  her  match  yet  in 
fortune  if  all  goes  well." 

I  was  growing  as  red  as  fire;  I  did  not 
know  what  to  say,  and  yet  I  wanted  to  say 
something;  but  the  idea  of  having  a  wife  of 
my  own  at  some  future  day,  though  it  had 
often  floated  about  in  my  own  head,  sounded 
so  strange  when  it  was  thus  first  spoken  about 
by  my  father.  He  saw  my  confusion,  and  half 
smiling  said, — 

"  Well,  lad,  what  dost  say  to  the  old  father's 
plans?  Thou  art  but  young,  to  be  sure;  but 
when  I  was  thy  age,  I  would  ha'  given 
my    right    hand    if     I    might    ha'    thought    of 


A    STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         79 

the  chance  of  wedding  the  lass  I  cared 
for " 

"My  mother?"  asked  I,  a  Httle  struck  by 
the  change  of  his  tone  of  voice. 

"No!  not  thy  mother.  Thy  mother  is  a 
very  good  woman  —  none  better.  No!  the 
lass  I  cared  for  at  nineteen  ne'er  knew  how  I 
loved  her,  and  a  year  or  two  after  and  she  was 
dead,  and  ne'er  knew.  I  think  she  would  ha' 
been  glad  to  ha'  known  it,  poor  Molly;  but  I 
had  to  leave  the  place  where  we  lived  for  to 
try  to  earn  my  bread  —  and  I  meant  to  come 
back  —  but  before  ever  I  did,  she  was  dead 
antl  gone:  I  ha'  never  gone  there  since.  But 
if  you  fancy  Phillis  Holman,  and  can  get  her 
to  fancy  you,  my  lad,  it  shall  go  different  with 
you,  Paul,  to  what  it  did  with  your  father." 

I  took  counsel  with  mvself  very  rapidly, 
and  T  came  to  a  clear  conclusion. 

"  Father,"  said  T,  "  if  I  fancied  Phillis  ever 
so  much,  she  would  never  fancy  me.  I  like 
her  as  much  as  I  could  like  a  sister,  and  she 
likes  me  as  if  I  were  her  brother  —  her  younger 
brother." 


8o  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

I  could  see  my  father's  countenance  fall  a 
little. 

"  You  see  she's  so  clever —  she's  more  like 
a  man  than  a  woman  —  she  knows  Latin  and 
Greek." 

"  She'd  forget  'em,  if  she'd  a  houseful  of 
children,"  was  my  father's  comment  on  this. 

"  But  she  knows  many  a  thing  besides,  and 
is  wise  as  well  as  learned ;  she  has  been  so 
much  with  her  father.  She  would  never  think 
much  of  me,  and  I  should  like  my  wife  to  think 
a  deal  of  her  husband." 

"  It  is  not  just  book-learning  or  the  want 
of  it  as  makes  a  wife  think  much  or  little  of 
her  husband,"  replied  my  father,  evidently  un- 
willing to  give  up  a  project  which  had  taken 
deep  root  in  his  mind.  "It's  a  something — I 
don't  rightly  know  how  to  call  it  —  if  he's 
manly,  and  sensible,  and  straightforward;  and 
I  reckon  you're  that,  my  boy." 

"  I  don't  think  I  should  like  to  have  a  wife 
taller  than  I  am,  father,"  said  I,  smiling;  he 
smiled  too,  but  not  heartily. 

"  Well,"  said  he,  after  a  pause.     "  It's  but  a 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         8 1 

few  days  I've  been  thinking  of  it;  but  I'd  got 
as  fond  of  my  notion  as  if  it  had  been  a  new 
engine  as  I'd  been  planning  out.  Here's  our 
Paul,  thinks  I  to  myself,  a  good  sensible  breed 
o'  lad,  as  has  never  vexed  or  troubled  his 
mother  or  me;  with  a  good  business  opening 
out  before  him,  age  nineteen,  not  so  bad- 
looking,  though  perhaps  not  to  call  handsome, 
and  here's  his  cousin,  not  too  near  a  cousin,  but 
just  nice,  as  one  may  say;  aged  seventeen,  good 
and  true,  and  well  brought  up  to  work  with 
her  hands  as  well  as  her  head;  a  scholar, —  but 
that  can't  be  helped,  and  is  more  her  mis- 
fortune than  her  fault,  seeing  she  is  the  only 
child  of  a  scholar  —  and  as  I  said  afore,  once 
she's  a  wife  and  a  mother  she'll  forget  it  all, 
I'll  be  bound,  —  with  a  good  fortune  in  land 
and  house  when  it  shall  please  the  Lortl  to 
take  her  parents  to  himself;  with  eyes  like 
poor  Molly's  for  beauty,  a  color  that  comes 
and  goes  on  a  milk-white  skin,  and  as  pretty 

a   mouth " 

"  Why,   Mr.   Manning,  what    fair   lady   arc 
you  describing?"    asked  Mr.  Iloldswortli,  who 


82  COUSIN  PHIL  LIS. 

had  come  quickly  and  suddenly  upon  our  tete- 
d,-tHe^  and  had  caught  my  father's  last  words 
as  he  entered  the  room. 

Both  my  father  and  I  felt  rather  abashed; 
it  was  such  an  odd  subject  for  us  to  be  talking 
about;  but  my  father,  like  a  straightforward, 
simple  man  as  he  was,  spoke  out  the  truth. 

"  I've  been  telling  Paul  of  Ellison's  offer, 
and  saying  how  good  an  opening  it  made  for 
him " 

"  I  wish  I'd  as  good,"  said  Mr.  Holdsworth. 
"  But  has  the  business  a  '  pretty  mouth  ? '  " 

"  You're  always  so  full  of  your  joking,  Mr. 
Holdsworth,"  said  my  father.  "  I  was  going  to 
say  that  if  he  and  his  cousin  Phillis  Ilolman 
liked  to  make  it  up  between  them,  I  would  put 
no  spoke  in  the  wheel." 

"Phillis  Holman!"  said  Mr.  Holdsworth. 
"  Is  she  the  daughter  of  the  minister-farmer 
out  at  Heathbridge?  Have  I  been  helping  on 
the  course  of  true  love  by  letting  you  go  there 
so  often?     I  knew  nothing  of  it." 

"  There  is  nothing  to  know,"  said  I,  more 
annoyed  than  I  chose  to  show.     "  There  is  no 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         83 

more  true  love  in  the  case  than  may  be  be- 
tween the  first  brother  and  sister  you  may 
choose  to  meet.  I  have  been  telHng  father 
she  would  never  think  of  me;  she's  a  great 
deal  taller  and  cleverer;  and  I'd  rather  be 
taller  and  more  learned  than  my  wife,  when  I 
have  one." 

"  And  it  is  she,  then,  that  has  the  pretty 
mouth  your  father  spoke  about?  I  should 
think  that  would  be  an  antidote  to  the  clever- 
ness and  learning.  But  I  ought  to  apologize 
for  breaking  in  upon  vour  last  night;  I  came 
upon  business  to  your  father." 

And  then  he  and  my  father  began  to  talk 
about  many  things  that  had  no  interest  for  me 
just  then,  and  I  began  to  go  over  again  my 
conversation  with  my  father.  The  more  I 
thought  about  it  the  more  I  felt  that  I  had 
spoken  truly  about  my  feelings  towaid  Phillis 
Ilolman.  I  loved  her  dearlv  as  a  sister,  but  I 
could  never  fancy  her  as  my  wife.  Still  less 
c(ndd  I  think  of  her  ever  —  yc^.,  condescending-., 
that  IS  the  woid  -  condescending  to  marry  me. 
I  was  roused  from   a  re\ei"ie  ^m  what  I  should 


§4  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

like  my  possible  wife  to  be,  by  hearing  my 
father's  warm  praise  of  the  minister,  as  a  most 
unusual  character;  how  they  had  got  back 
from  the  diameter  of  driving-wheels  to  the 
subject  of  the  Holmans  I  could  never  tell;  but 
I  saw  that  my  father's  weighty  praises  were 
exciting  some  curiosity  in  Mr.  Holdsworth's 
mind;  indeed,  he  said,  almost  in  a  voice  of 
reproach, — 

"  Why,  Paul,  you  never  told  me  what 
kind  of  a  fellow  this  minister-cousin  of  yours 
was! " 

"  I  don't  know  that  I  found  out,  sir,"  said  I. 
"  But  if  I  had,  I  don't  think  you'd  have  listened 
to  me,  as  you   have  done  to  my  father." 

"No!  most  likely  not,  old  fellow,"  replied 
Mr.  Holdsworth,  laughing.  And  again  and 
afresh  I  saw  what  a  handsome,  pleasant,  clear 
face  his  was;  and  though  this  evening  I  had 
been  a  bit  put  out  with  him  —  through  his 
sudden  coming,  and  his  having  heard  my 
father's  open-hearted  confidence  —  my  hero 
resumed  all  his  empire  over  me  by  his  bright 
merry  laugh. 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         85 

And  if  he  had  not  resunied  his  old  place 
that  night,  he  would  have  done  so  the  next  day, 
when,  after  my  father's  departure,  Air.  Holds- 
worth  spoke  about  him  with  such  just  respect 
for  his  character,  such  ungrudging  admiration 
of  his  great  mechanical  genius,  that  I  was  com- 
pelled to  sav,  almost  unawares, — 

"  Thank  you,  sir.  I  am  very  much  obliged 
to  you." 

"  Oh,  you're  not  at  all.  I  am  only  speaking 
the  truth.  Here's  a  Birmingham  workman, 
self-educated,  one  may  say — having  never  asso- 
ciated witli  stimulating  minds,  or  had  what 
advantages  travel  and  contact  with  the  world 
may  be  supposed  to  afford  —  working  out  his 
own  thoughts  into  steel  and  iron,  making  a 
scientific  name  for  himself  —  a  fortune,  if  it 
pleases  him  to  work  for  money  —  and  keeping 
Ills  singleness  of  heart,  his  perfect  simplicity 
of  manner;  it  puts  me  out  of  patience  to  think 
of  mv  expensive  schooling,  m\-  travels  hither 
and  thither,  my  heaps  of  scientific  books,  and  I 
have  done  nothing  to  s|)eak  of.  But  it's  evi- 
dently   goo<l    blood;  there's   that    Mr.  Holman, 


86  COUSTN  PHILLIS. 

that  cousin  of  yours,  made  of  the  same 
stuff." 

"  But  he's  only  cousin  because  he  married 
my  mother's  second  cousin,"  said  I. 

"  That  knocks  a  pretty  theory  on  the  head, 
and  twice  over,  too.  I  should  like  to  make 
Holman's  acquaintance." 

"  I  am  sure  they  would  be  so  glad  to  see 
you  at  Hope  Farm,"  said  I,  eagerly.  "  In  fact, 
they've  asked  me  to  bring. you  several  times; 
only  I  thought  you  would  find  it  dull." 

"Not  at  all.     I   can't  go  yet  though,  even 

if  you  do  get  me  an  invitation;  for  the  

Company    want    me    to    go    to    the 

Valley,  and  look  over  the  ground  a  bit  for 
them,  to  see  if  it  would  do  for  a  branch  line;  it's 
a  job  which  may  take  me  away  for  some  time; 
but  I  shall  be  backward  and  forward,  and  you're 
quite  up  to  doing  what  is  needed  in  my  ab- 
sence; the  only  work  that  may  be  beyond  you 
is  keeping  old  Jevons  from  drinking." 

He  went  on  giving  me  directions  about  the 
management  of  the  men  employed  on  the  line, 
and    no   more   was    said    then,    or    for    several 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.        87 

months,  about  his  going  to   Hope   Farm.     He 

went  off  into Valley,  a  dark,  overshadowed 

dale,  where  the  sun  seemed  to  set  behind  the 
hills  before  four  o'clock  on  midsummer  after- 
noons. 

Perhaps  it  was  this  that  brought  on  the 
attack  of  low  fever  which  he  had  soon  after 
the  beginning  of  the  new  year;  he  was  very 
ill  for  manv  weeks,  almost  many  months;  a 
married  sister  —  his  only  relation,  I  think  — 
came  down  from  London  to  nurse  him,  and  I 
went  over  to  him  when  I  could,  to  see  him, 
and  give  him  "  masculine  news,"  as  he  called 
it;  reports  of  the  progress  of  the  line,  which, 
I  am  glad  to  sav,  I  was  able  to  carry  on  in  his 
absence,  in  the  slow,  gradual  way  which  suited 
the  company  best,  while  trade  was  in  a  languid 
state,  and  money  dear  in  the  market.  Of 
course,  with  this  occupation  for  my  scantv 
leisure,  I  did  not  often  go  over  to  Hope  Farm. 
Whenever  I  did  gf),  I  met  with  a  thorough 
welcome;  and  many  incjuiries  were  made  as 
to  Holdsworth's  illness,  and  the  progress  of  his 
recovery. 


88  COUSIN  PHIL  LIS. 

At  length,  in  June  I  think  it  was,  he  was 
siifiiciently  recovered  to  come  back  to  his  lodg- 
ings at  Eltham,  and  resume  part  at  least  of  his 
woik.  His  sister,  Mrs.  Robinson,  had  be  n 
obliged  to  leave  him  some  weeks  before,  owing 
to  some  epidemic  among  her  own  children. 
As  long  as  I  had  seen  Air.  Iloldsworth  in  the 
rooms  at  the  little  inn  at  Hensleydale,  where  I 
had  been  accustomed  to  look  upon  him  as  an 
invalid,  I  had  not  been  aware  of  the  visible 
shake  his  fever  had  given  to  his  health.  But, 
once  back  in  the  old  lodgings,  where  I  had 
always  seen  him  so  buoyant,  eloquent,  decided, 
and  vigorous  in  former  days,  my  spirits  sank 
at  the  change  in  one  whom  I  had  always  re- 
garded with  a  strong  feeling  of  admiring  affec- 
tion. He  sank  into  silence  and  despondency 
after  the  least  exertion ;  he  seemed  as  if  he 
could  not  make  up  his  mind  to  any  action,  or 
else  that,  when  it  was  made  up,  he  lacked 
strength  to  carry  out  his  purpose.  Of  course, 
it  was  but  the  natural  state  of  slow  conva- 
lescence, after  so  sharp  an  illness;  but  at  the 
time,  I  did  not  know  this,  and  perhaps  I  repre- 


A    STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         89 

seated  his  state  as  more  serious  than  it  was 
to  my  kind  rehitions  at  Hope  Farm;  who,  in 
their  grave,  simple,  eager  way,  immediately 
thought  of  the  only  help  they  could  give. 

"  Bring  him  out  here,"  said  the  minister. 
''  Our  air  here  is  gootl  to  a  proverb;  the  June 
days  are  fine;  he  ma}'  loiter  away  his  time  in 
the  hayfield,  and  the  sweet  smells  will  be  a 
balm  in  themselves  —  better  than  physic." 

"And,"  said  cousin  Holman,  scarcely  wait- 
ing for  her  husband  to  finish  his  sentence, 
"  tell  him  there  is  new  milk  and  fresh  eggs 
to  be  had  for  the  asking;  it's  lucky  Daisy  has 
just  calved,  for  her  milk  is  always  as  good  as 
other  cow's  cream ;  and  there  is  the  plaid  room 
with  the  morning  sun  all  streaming  in." 

Phillis  said  notliing,  but  looked  as  much 
interested  in  the  project  as  anyone.  I  took  it 
up  myself.  I  wanted  them  to  see  him;  him  to 
know  them.  I  proposed  it  to  him  when  I  got 
liome.  lie  was  tf)0  languid  after  the  day's 
fatigue,  to  be  willing  to  make  the  little  exer- 
tion of  going  among  strangers;  and  disap- 
pointed  me  by  almost  declining   to  accept  the 


90  COUS/jV  PHILLIS. 

invitation  I  brought.  The  next  morning  it 
was  different;  he  apologized  for  his  ungra- 
ciousness of  the  night  before;  and  told  me 
that  he  would  get  all  things  in  train,  so  as  to 
be  ready  to  go  out  with  me  to  Hope  Farm  on 
the  following  Saturday. 

"  For  you  must  go  with  me,  Manning," 
said  he;  "I  used  to  be  as  impudent  a  fellow 
as  need  be,  and  rather  liked  going  among 
strangers,  and  making  my  way;  but  since  my 
illness  I  am  almost  like  a  girl,  and  turn  hot 
and  cold  with  shyness,  as  they  do,  I  fancy." 

So  it  was  fixed.  We  were  to  go  out  to 
Hope  Farm  on  Saturday  afternoon;  and  it 
was  also  understood  that  if  the  air  and  the  life 
suited  Mr.  Holdsworth,  he  was  to  remain 
there  for  a  week  or  ten  days,  doing  what  work 
he  could  at  that  end  of  the  line,  while  I  took 
his  place  at  Eltham  to  the  best  of  my  ability. 
I  grew  a  little  nervous,  as  the  time  drew  near, 
and  wondered  how  the  brilliant  Holdsworth 
would  agree  with  the  quiet,  quaint  family  of 
the  minister;  how  they  would  like  him,  and 
many  of  his  half-foreign  ways.     I  tried  to  pre- 


A   STORT  OF  ElVGLISH  LOVE.        9 1 

pare  him,  by  telling-  him  from  time  to  time 
little  things  about  the  goings-on  at  Hope 
Farm. 

"  Manning,"  said  he,  "  I  see  you  don't  think 
I  am  half  good  enough  for  your  friends.  Out 
with  it,  man." 

"  No,"  I  replied,  boldly.  "  I  think  you  are 
good;  but  I  don't  know  if  you  are  quite  of 
their  kind  of  goodness." 

"  And  you've  found  out  already  that  there 
is  a  greater  chance  of  disagreement  between 
two  '  kinds  of  goodness,'  each  having  its  own 
idea  of  right,  than  between  a  given  goodness 
and  a  moderate  degree  of  nauglitiness^  which 
last  often  arises  from  an  indifference  to  right?" 

"  I  don't  know.  I  think  you're  talking 
metaphysics,  and  I  am  sure  that  is  bad  for 
you." 

"  '  When  a  man  talks  to  you  in  a  way  that 
you  don't  understand  about  a  thing  which 
he  does  not  understand,  them's  meta]ihvsics,' 
You  remember  the  clown's  defmition,  don't 
you,  Manning?  " 

"  Xo,    I    don't,"  said    I.      "  Hut   what    I    do 


92  COUSIN  PHILLTS. 

understand  is,  that  you  must  go  to  bed;  and 
tell  me  at  what  time  we  must  start  to-morrow, 
that  I  may  go  to  Hepworth,  and  get  those 
letters  written  we  w^ere  talking  about  this 
morning." 

"  Wait  till  to-morrow,  and  let  us  see  what 
the  day  is  like,"  he  answered,  with  such  languid 
indecision  as  showed  me  he  was  over-fatigued. 
So  I  went  my  way. 

The  morrow  was  blue  and  sunny,  and 
beautiful;  the  very  perfection  of  an  early  sum- 
mer's day.  Mr.  Holdsworth  was  all  impa- 
tience to  be  off  into  the  country;  morning  had 
brought  back  his  freshness  of  strength,  and 
consequent  eagerness  to  be  doing.  I  was 
afraid  we  were  going  to  my  cousin's  farm 
rather  too  early,  before  they  would  expect  us; 
but  what  could  I  do  with  such  a  restless, 
vehement  man  as  Holdsworth  was  that  morn 
ing?  We  came  down  upon  the  Hope  Farm 
before  the  dew  was  off  the  grass  on  the  shady 
side  of  the  lane;  the  great  house-dog  w^as 
loose,  basking  in  the  sun,  near  the  closed  side 
door.      I  was  surprised  at  this  door  being  shut, 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         93 

for  all  summer  long  it  was  open  from  morn- 
ing to  night;  but  it  was  only  on  latch.  I 
opened  it,  Rover  watching  me  with  half- 
suspicious,  half-trustful  eyes.  The  room  was 
empty. 

"  I  don't  know  where  they  can  be,"  said  I. 
"  But  come  in  and  sit  down  while  I  go  and 
look  for  them.     You  must  be  tired." 

"  Not  I.  This  sweet,  balmy  air  is  like  a 
thousand  tonics.  Besides,  this  room  is  hot,  and 
smells  of  those  pungent  wood-ashes.  What 
are  we  to  do?  " 

"  Go  around  to  the  kitchen.     Jietty  will  tell 
us  where  they  are." 

So  we  went  around  into  the  farmyard, 
Rover  accompanying  us  out  of  a  grave  sense 
of  duty.  Betty  was  washing  out  her  milk- 
pans  in  the  cold,  bubbling  spring-water  that 
constantly  trickled  in  and  out  of  a  stone  trough. 
In  such  weather  as  this,  most  of  her  kitchen- 
work  was  df)ne  out  of  doors. 

"Eh,  dear!"  said  she,  "  the  minister  and 
missus  is  awav  at  Ilornbv!  The\'  ne'er  thought 
(jf  your  cfjming  so  betimes!      The  missus  had 


94  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

some  errands  to  do,  and  she  thought  as  she'd 
walk  with  the  minister  and  be  back  by  dinner- 
time." 

"Did  not  they  expect  us  to  dinner?" 
said  I. 

"  Well,  they  did,  and  they  did  not,  as  I 
may  say  Missus  said  to  me  the  cold  lamb 
would  do  well  enough  if  you  did  not  come; 
and  if  you  did,  I  was  to  put  on  a  chicken  and 
some  bacon  to  boil;  and  I'll  go  do  it  now,  for  it 
is  hard  to  boil  bacon  enough." 

"  And  is  Phillis  gone,  too  ?  "  Mr.  Holds- 
worth  was  making  friends  with  Rover. 

"No!  She's  just  somewhere  about.  I 
reckon  you'll  find  her  in  the  kitchen-garden, 
getting  peas." 

"  Let  us  go  there,"  said  Holdsworth,  sud- 
denly leaving  off  his  play  with  the  dog. 

So  I  led  the  way  into  the  kitchen-garden. 
It  was  in  the  first  j^romise  of  a  summer  profuse 
in  vegetables  and  fruits.  Perhaps  it  was  not 
so  much  cared  for  as  other  parts  of  the  prop- 
erty;  but  it  was  more  attended  to  than 
most     kitchen-gardens     belonging     to    farm- 


A   STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         95 

houses.  There  were  borders  of  flowers 
along  each  side  of  the  gravel  walks;  and 
there  was  an  old  sheltering  wall  on  the 
north  side  covered  with  tolerably  choice  fruit- 
trees  ;  there  was  a  slope  down  to  the  fishpond 
at  the  end,  where  there  were  great  strawberry- 
beds;  and  raspberry -bushes  and  rose-bushes 
grew  wherever  there  was  a  space;  it  seemed  a 
chance  which  had  been  planted.  Long  rows 
of  peas  stretched  at  right  angles  from  the  main 
walk,  and  I  saw  Phillis  stooping  down  among 
them,  before  she  saw  us.  As  soon  as  she 
heard  our  cranching  steps  on  the  gravel,  she 
stood  up,  and,  shading  her  eyes  from  the  sun, 
recognized  us.  She  was  quite  still  for  a  mo- 
ment, and  then  came  slowly  toward  us,  blush- 
ing a  little  from  evident  shyness.  I  had  never 
seen  Phillis  sliy  before. 

«  This  IS  Mr.  Iloldsworth,  Phillis,"  said  I, 
as  socMi  as  I  had  shaken  hands  with  her.  She 
glanced  up  at  him,  and  then  looked  down,  more 
Ihislied  than  e\cr  at  his  grand  formality  of 
taking  his  liat  off  and  bowing;  such  manners 
had  never  been  seen  at  Hope  Farm  bef(jre. 


96  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

"  Father  and  mother  are  out.  They  will 
be  so  sorry;  you  did  not  write,  Paul,  as  you 
said  you  would." 

"  It  was  my  fault,"  said  Uoldsworth,  under- 
standing what  she  meant  as  well  as  if  she  had 
put  it  more  fully  into  words.  "  I  have  not  yet 
given  up  all  the  privileges  of  an  invalid;  one 
of  which  is  indecision.  Last  night,  when  your 
cousin  asked  me  at  what  time  we  were  to 
start,  I  really  could  not  make  up  my  mind." 

Phillis  seemed  as  if  she  could  not  make  up 
her  mind  as  to  what  to  do  with  us.  I  tried  to 
help  her  — 

"  Have  3'ou  finished  getting  peas?  "  taking 
hold  of  the  half-filled  basket  she  was  uncon- 
sciously holding  in  her  hand;  "or  may  we 
stay  and  help  you  ?  " 

"  If  you  would.  But  perhaps  it  will  tire 
you,  sir?"  added  she,  speaking  now  to  Holds- 
worth. 

"  Not  a  bit,"  said  he.  "  It  will  carry  me 
back  twenty  years  in  my  life,  when  I  used  to 
gather  peas  in  my  grandfather's  garden.  I 
suppose  I  may  eat  a  few  as  I  go  along?  " 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH    LOVE.         97 

"  Certainly,  sir.  But  if  you  went  to  the 
strawberry-beds  you  would  find  some  straw- 
berries ripe,  and  Paul  can  show  you  where 
they  are." 

"  I  am  afraid  you  distrust  me.  I  can  assure 
you  I  know  the  exact  fullness  at  which  peas 
should  be  gathered.  I  take  great  care  not  to 
pluck  them  when  they  are  unripe.  I  will  not 
be  turned  off,  as  unfit  for  my  work." 

This  was  a  style  of  half-joking  talk  that 
Phillis  was  not  accustomed  to.  She  looked  for 
a  moment  as  if  she  would  have  liked  to  defend 
herself  from  the  playful  charge  of  distrust 
made  against  her,  but  she  ended  by  not  saying 
a  word.  We  all  plucked  our  peas  in  busy 
silence  for  the  next  five  minutes.  Then  Holds- 
worth  lifted  himself  up  from  between  the 
rows,  and  said,  a  little  wearily  — 

"  I  am  afraid  I  must  strike  work.  I  am 
not  as  strong  as  I  fancied  mvself." 

Phillis  was  full  of  penitence  immediately 
He  did,  indeed,  look  pale;  and  she  blamed 
herself  for  having  allowed  him  to  help 
her. 

7 


98  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

"  It  was  very  thoughtless  of  me.  I  did 
not  know  —  I  thought,  perhaps,  you  really 
liked  it.  I  ought  to  have  offered  you  some- 
thing to  eat,  sir!  Oh,  Paul,  we  have  gathered 
quite  enough;  how  stujoid  I  was  to  forget  that 
Mr.  Holdsworth  had  been  ill!"  And  in  a 
blushing  hurry  she  led  the  way  toward  the 
house.  We  went  in,  and  she  moved  a  heavy 
cushioned  chair  forward,  into  which  Holds- 
worth  was  only  too  glad  to  sink.  Then  with 
deft  and  quiet  speed  she  brought  in  a  little 
tray,  wine,  water,  cake,  home-made  bread  and 
newly-churned  butter.  She  stood  by  in  some 
anxiety  till,  after  bite  and  sup,  the  color  re- 
turned to  Mr.  Holdsworth's  face,  and  he  would 
fain  have  made  us  some  laughing  apologies  for 
the  fright  he  had  given  us.  But  then  Phillis 
drew  back  from  her  innocent  show  of  care  and 
interest,  and  relapsed  into  the  cold  shyness 
habitual  to  her  when  she  was  first  thrown  into 
the  company  of  strangers.  She  brought  out 
the  last  week's  county  paper  (which  Mr.  Holds- 
worth  had  read  five  days  ago)  and  then  quietly 
withdrew;  and  then   he  subsided  into  languor, 


A   STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.        99 

leaning  back  and  shutting  his  eyes  as  if  he 
would  go  to  sleep.  I  stole  into  the  kitchen 
after  Phillis;  but  she  had  made  the  round  of 
the  corner  of  the  house  outside,  and  I  found 
her  sitting  on  the  horse-mount,  with  her  basket 
of  peas,  and  a  basin  into  wdiich  she  was  shell- 
ing them.  Rover  lay  at  her  feet,  snapping 
now  and  then  at  the  files.  I  went  to  her,  and 
tried  to  help  her;  but  somehow  the  sweet, 
crisp  young  peas  found  their  way  more  fre- 
quently into  my  mouth  than  into  the  basket, 
while  we  talked  together  in  a  low  tone,  fearful 
of  being  overheard  through  the  open  case- 
ments of  the  house-place  in  which  Holdsworth 
was  resting. 

"  Don't  you  think  him  handsome?  "  asked  I. 

"  Perhaps  —  yes  —  I  have  hardly  looked  at 
him,"  she  replied.  "  But  is  not  he  very  like  a 
foreigner?" 

"  Yes,  he  cuts  his  hair  foreign  fashion," 
said  I. 

"  I  like  an  Englishman  to  look  like  an  En- 
glishman." 

"  I  don't  think  he  thinks  about  it.     He  says 


lOO  COUSIN  PIIILLIS. 

he  began  that  way  when  he  was  in  Italy,  be- 
cause everybody  wore  it  so,  and  it  is  natural  to 
keep  it  on  in  England." 

"  Not  if  he  began  it  in  Italy,  because  every- 
body there  wore  it  so.  Everybody  here  wears 
it  differently." 

I  was  a  little  offended  with  Phillis's  logical 
fault-finding  with  my  friend;  and  I  determined 
to  change  the  subject. 

"  When  is  your  mother  coming  home?  " 

"  I  should  think  she  might  come  any  time 
now;  but  she  had  to  go  and  see  Mrs.  ISIorton, 
who  was  ill,  and  she  might  be  kept,  and  not  be 
home  till  dinner.  Don't  you  think  you  ought 
to  go  and  see  how  Mr.  Holdsworth  is  going 
on,  Paul?     He  may  be  faint  again." 

I  went  at  her  bidding;  but  there  was  no 
need  for  it.  Mr.  Holdsworth  was  up,  standing 
by  the  window,  his  hands  in  his  pockets;  he 
had  evidently  been  watching  us.  He  turned 
away  as  I  entered. 

"  So  that  is  the  girl  I  found  your  good 
father  planning  for  your  wife,  Paul,  that  even- 
ing when  I  interrupted  you!     Are  you  of  the 


A   STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       loi 

same  coy  mind  still?  It  did  not  look  like  it  a 
minute  ago." 

"  Phillis  and  I  understand  each  other,"  I  re- 
plied, sturdily.  "  We  are  like  brother  and 
sister.  She  would  not  have  me  as  a  husband, 
if  there  was  not  another  man  in  the  world ; 
and  it  would  take  a  deal  to  make  me  think  of 
her  —  as  my  father  wishes"  (somehow  I  did 
not  like  to  say  "as  a  wife"),  "but  we  love 
each  other  dearly." 

"Well?  lam  rather  surprised  at  it  — not 
at  your  loving  each  other  in  a  brother-and- 
sister  kind  of  way  —  but  at  your  finding  it  so 
impossible  to  fall  in  love  with  such  a  beautiful 
woman." 

Woman!  beautiful  woman!  I  had  thought 
of  Phillis  as  a  comely  but  awkward  girl;  and 
I  could  not  banish  the  pinafore  from  my  mind's 
eye  when  I  tried  to  pictui'c  her  to  myself. 
Now  I  turned,  as  Mr.  Iloldsworth  had  done, 
to  look  at  her  again  out  of  tlie  window;  she 
had  just  finished  her  task,  and  was  standing 
up,  her  back  to  us,  holding  tlie  basket,  and   the 


COUSIN  PHIL  LIS. 


basin  in  it,  high  in  air,  out  of  Rover's  reach, 
who  was  giving  vent  to  his  dcHght  at  the  prob- 
abihty  of  a  change  of  j^lace  by  glad  leaps  and 
barks,  and  snatches  at  what  he  imagined  to  be 
a  withheld  prize.  At  length  she  grew  tired  of 
their  mutual  play,  and  with  a  feint  of  striking 
him,  and  a  "Down,  Rover!  do  hush!"  she 
looked  toward  the  window  where  we  were 
standing,  as  if  to  reassure  herself  that  no  one 
had  been  disturbed  by  the  noise,  and  seeing  us, 
she  colored  all  over,  and  hurried  away,  with 
Rover  still  curving  in  sinuous  lines  about  her 
as  she  walked. 

"  I  should  like  to  have  sketched  her,"  said 
Mr.  Holdsworth,  as  he  turned  away.  He  went 
back  to  his  chair,  and  rested  in  silence  for  a 
minute  or  two.     Then  he  was  up  again. 

"  I  would  give  a  good  deal  for  a  book,"  said 
he.  "  It  would  keep  me  quiet."  He  began  to 
look  around;  there  were  a  few  volumes  at  one 
end  of  the  shovel-board. 

"Fifth  volume  of  Matthew  Henry's  Cojti- 
mentary^''  said   he,  reading  their  titles    aloud. 


A    STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1 03 

'■'■Housezcifc's  Complete  AFanual ^  Berridge 
on  Prayer ;  L'' Iiifer?io  —  Dante!"  in  great  sur- 
prise.    "Why,  who  reads  this?" 

"  I  told  you  Phillis  read  it.  Don't  you  re- 
member?    She  knows  Latin  and   Greek,  too." 

"  To  be  sure!  I  remember!  But  somehow 
I  never  put  two  and  two  together.  That  quiet 
girl,  full  of  household  work,  is  the  wonderful 
scholar,  then,  that  put  you  to  rout  with  her 
questions  when  you  first  began  to  come  here. 
To  be  sure,  'Cousin  Phillis!'  What's  here:  a 
paper  with  the  hard,  obsolete  words  written 
out.  I  wonder  what  sort  of  a  dictionary  she 
has  got.  Baretti  won't  tell  her  all  these  words. 
Stay !  I  have  got  a  pencil  here.  I'll  write 
down  the  most  accepted  meanings,  and  save 
her  a  little  trouble." 

So  he  took  her  book  and  the  paper  back  to 
the  little  round  table,  and  employed  himself  in 
writing  explanations  and  definitions  of  the 
words  which  had  troubled  her.  I  was  not  sure 
if  he  was  not  taking  a  liberty;  it  did  not  quite 
please  me,  and  yet  I  did  not  know  why.  lie 
had  only   just  done,  and   replaced  the   paper   in 


1 04^  COUSIN  P  HILL  IS. 

the  book,  and  put  the  latter  back  in  its  place, 
when  I  heard  the  sound  of  wheels  stopping  in 
the  lane,  and  looking  out  I  saw  cousin  Holman 
getting  out  of  a  neighbor's  gig,  making  her 
little  curtsey  of  acknowledgment,  and  then 
coming  towards  the  house.  I  went  out  to  meet 
her. 

"Oh,  Paul!"  said  she,  "I  am  so  sorry  I  was 
kept;  and  then  Thomas  Dobson  said  if  I  would 

wait  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  he  would  But 

where's  your  friend,  Mr.  Holdsworth?  I  hope 
he  is  come." 

Just  then  he  came  out,  and  with  his  pleasant, 
cordial  manner  took  her  hand,  and  thanked  her 
for  asking  him  to  come  out  here  to  get  strong. 

"  I'm  sure  I  am  very  glad  to  see  you,  sir. 
It  was  the  minister's  thought.  I  took  it  into 
my  head  you  would  be  dull  in  our  quiet  house, 
for  Paul  says  you've  been  such  a  great  traveler; 
but  the  minister  said  dullness  would  perhaps 
suit  you  while  you  were  but  ailing,  and  that  I 
was  to  ask  Paul  to  be  here  as  much  as  he  could. 
I  hope  you'll  find  yourself  happy  with  us,  I'm 
sure,  sir.     Has  Phillis  given  you  something  to 


A    STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1 05 

eat  and  drink,  I  wonder?  there's  a  deal  in  eat. 
ing  a  little  often,  if  one  has  to  get  strong  after 
an  illness."  And  then  she  began  to  question 
him  as  to  the  details  of  his  indisposition  in  her 
simple,  motherly  way.  He  seemed  at  once  to 
understand  her,  and  to  enter  into  friendly  rela- 
tions with  her.  It  was  not  quite  the  same  in 
the  evening  when  the  minister  came  home. 
Men  have  always  a  little  natural  antipathy  to 
get  over  when  they  first  meet  as  strangers. 
J^ut  in  this  case  each  was  disposed  to  make  an 
effort  to  like  the  other;  only  each  was  to  each 
a  specimen  of  an  unknown  class.  I  had  to 
leave  the  Hope  Farm  on  Sunday  afternoon,  as 
I  had  Mr.  Holdsworth's  work  as  well  as  my 
own  to  Icxjk  to  in  Eltham;  and  I  was  not  at  all 
sure  hf)w  things  would  go  on  during  the  week 
that  Holdsvvorth  was  to  remain  on  his  visit;  I 
had  been  once  or  twice  in  hot  water  already  at 
the  near  clash  of  opinions  between  the  minister 
and  my  much-vaunted  friend.  On  the  Wednes- 
Jav  I  received  a  short  note  from  Holdsworth; 
he  was  going  to  stay  on,  and  return  with  me 
on  the  following  Sunday,  and  he  wanted  me  to 


lo6  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

send  him  a  certain  list  of  books,  his  theodolite 
and  other  surveying  instruments,  all  of  which 
could  easily  be  conveyed  down  the  line  to 
Heathbridge.  I  went  to  his  lodgings  and 
picked  out  the  books.  Italian,  Latin,  trigonom- 
etry; a  pretty  considerable  parcel  they  made, 
besides  the  implements.  I  began  to  be  curious 
as  to  the  general  progress  of  affairs  at  Hope 
Farm,  but  I  could  not  go  over  till  the  Satur- 
day. At  Heathbridge  I  found  Holdsworth, 
come  to  meet  me.  He  was  looking  quite  a 
different  man  to  what  I  had  left  him;  em- 
browned, sparkles  in  his  eyes,  so  languid 
before.  I  told  him  how  much  stronger  he 
looked. 

"  Yes!  "said  he.  I  am  fidgeting  fain  to  be 
at  work  again.  Last  week  I  dreaded  the 
thoughts  of  my  emploj'ment;  now  I  am  full  of 
desire  to  begin.  This  week  in  the  country  has 
done  wonders  for  me." 

"You  have  enjoyed  yourself,  then?" 
"  Oh!  it  has  been  perfect  in  its  way.     Such 
a    thorough    country    life!     and    yet   removed 
from  the  dullness  which  I  always  used  to  fancy 


A    STORV   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       107 


accompanied  country  life,  by  the  extraordinary 
intelligence  of  the  minister.  I  have  fallen  into 
calling  him  '  the  minister,'  like  everyone  else." 

"You  get  on  with  him,  then?  "  said  I.  "  I 
was  a  little  afraid." 

"  I  was  on  the  verge  of  displeasing  him 
once  or  twice,  I  fear,  with  random  assertions 
and  exaggerated  expressions,  such  as  one  al- 
wavs  uses  with  other  people,  and  thinks  noth- 
ing of;  but  I  tried  to  check  myself  when  I 
saw  how  it  shocked  the  good  man ;  and  really 
it  is  very  wholesome  exercise,  this  trying  to 
make  one's  words  represent  one's  thoughts, 
instead  of  merely  looking  to  their  effect  on 
others." 

"Then  you  are  quite  friends  now?"  I 
asked. 

"  Yes,  thoroughly;  at  any  rate  as  far  as  I 
go.  I  never  met  with  a  man  with  such  a  de- 
sire for  knowledge.  In  information,  as  fai'  as 
it  can  be  gained  fr<jm  books,  he  far  exceeds  me 
on  most  subjects;  but  then  1  iia\e  traveled  and 
seen  — —  were  not  you  surprised  at  the  list  of 
things  I  sent  ftjr  ?  " 


lo8  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 


"Yes!  I  thought  it  did  not  promise  much 
rest." 

"Oh!  some  of  the  books  were  for  the 
minister,  and  some  for  his  daughter.  (I  call  her 
Phillis  to  myself,  but  I  use  euphuisms  in  speak- 
ing about  her  to  others.  I  don't  like  to  seem 
familiar,  and  yet  Miss  Holman  is  a  term  I  have 
never  heard  used.)" 

"  I  thought  the  Italian  books  were  for  her." 

"Yes!  Fancy  her  trying  at  Dante  for  her 
first  book  in  Italian!  I  had  a  caj^ital  novel  by 
Manzoni,  /  Pro?nessi  Sposi,  just  the  thing 
for  a  beginner;  and  if  she  must  still  puzzle  out 
Dante,   my  dictionary  is  far   better  than  hers." 

"  Then  she  found  out  you  had  written  those 
definitions  on  her  list  of  words?  " 

"Oh,  yes!" — with  a  smile  of  amusement 
and  pleasure.  He  was  going  to  tell  me  what 
had  taken  place,  but  checked  himself. 

"  But  I  don't  think  the  minister  will  like 
your  having  given  her  a  novel  to  read?" 

"  Pooh!  What  can  be  more  harmless?  Why 
make  a  bugbear  of  a  word?  It  is  as  pretty 
and   innocent   a   tale  as  can  be  met  with.     You 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1 09 

don't  suppose  they  take  Virgil  for  gos- 
pel?" 

By  this  time  we  were  at  the  farm.  I  think 
Phillis  gave  me  a  wiirmer  welcome  than  usual, 
and  cousin  Holman  was  kindness  itself.  Yet 
somehow  I  felt  as  if  I  had  lost  my  place,  and 
that  Holdsworth  had  taken  it.  He  knew  all 
the  ways  of  the  house;  he  was  full  of  little 
filial  attentions  to  cousin  Holman;  he  treated 
Phillis  with  the  affectionate  condescension  of 
an  elder  brother;  not  a  bit  more;  not  in  any 
way  different.  He  questioned  me  about  the  pro- 
gress of   affairs  in  Eltham  with  eager  interest. 

"Ah I"  said  cousin  Holman,  "you'll  be 
spending  a  different  kind  of  time  next  week  to 
what  you  have  done  this!  I  can  see  how  busy 
you'll  make  yourself!  But  if  you  don't  take 
care  you'll  be  ill  again,  and  have  to  come  back 
to  our  quiet  wavs  of  going  on." 

"  Do  yoi:  suppose  I  shall  need  to  be  ill 
to  wish  to  come  back  here?"  he  answered, 
warmly.  "  I  am  onlv  afraid  vou  have  treated 
nie  so  kindlv  tliat  I  shall  alwavs  l)e  turning  up 
on  your  hands." 


no  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

"  That's  right,"  she  replied.  "  Only  don't 
go  and  make  yourself  ill  by  overwork.  I 
hope  you'll  go  on  with  a  cup  of  new  milk 
every  morning,  for  I  am  sure  that  is  the  best 
medicine;  and  put  a  teaspoonful  of  rum  in  it, 
if  you  like;  many  a  one  speaks  highly  of  that, 
only  we  had  no  rum  in  the  house." 

I  brought  with  me  an  atmosphere  of  active 
life  which  I  think  he  had  begun  to  miss;  and 
it  was  natural  that  he  should  seek  my  com- 
pany, after  his  week  of  retirement.  Once  I 
saw  Phillis  looking  at  us  as  we  talked  together 
with  a  kind  of  wistful  curiosity;  but  as  soon  as 
she  caught  my  eye,  she  turned  away,  blushing 
deeply. 

That  evening  I  had  a  little  talk  with  the 
minister.  I  strolled  along  the  Hornby  road  to 
meet  him;  for  Holdsworth  was  giving  Phillis 
an  Italian  lesson,  and  cousin  Holman  had  fallen 
asleep  over  her  work. 

Somehow,  and  not  unwillingly  on  my  part, 
our  talk  fell  on  the  friend  whom  I  had  intro- 
duced to  the  Hope  Farm. 

"Yes!     I     like    him!"    said    the    minister, 


A   ST  OR  7'  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       HI 

weighing  his  words  a  Httle  as  he  spoke.  "  I 
Hke  him.  I  hope  I  am  justified  in  doing  it, 
but  he  takes  hold  of  me,  as  it  were ;  and  I  have 
almost  been  afraid  lest  he  carries  me  away,  in 
spite  of  my  judgment." 

"He  is  a  good  fellow;  indeed  he  is,"  said  I. 
"  My  father  thinks  well  of  him ;  and  I  have 
seen  a  deal  of  him.  I  would  not  have  had 
him  come  here  if  I  did  not  know  that  you 
would  approve  of  him." 

"Yes  "  (once  more  hesitating),  "I  like  him, 
and  I  think  he  is  an  upright  man;  there  is  a 
want  of  seriousness  in  his  talk  at  times;  but,  at 
the  same  time,  it  is  wonderful  to  listen  to  him ! 
He  makes  Horace  and  Virgil  living,  instead  of 
dead,  by  the  stories  he  tells  me  of  his  sojourn 
in  the  very  countries  where  they  lived,  ;nid 
where  to  this  day,  he  says  —  but  it  is  like 
dram-drinking.  I  listen  to  him  till  I  forget 
my  duties,  and  am  carried  off  my  feet.  Last 
.Sabbath  evening  he  led  us  away  into  talk 
on  profane   subjects  ill  befitting  the  day." 

By  this  time  we  were  at  the  house,  and  our 
conversation  stopped.      But  before  the  day  was 


112  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

out,  I  saw  the  unconscious  hold  that  my  friend 
had  got  over  all  the  family.  And  no  wonder; 
he  had  seen  so  much  and  done  so  much  as 
compared  to  them,  and  he  told  about  it  all  so 
easily  and  naturally,  and  yet  as  I  never  heard 
anyone  else  do;  and  his  ready  pencil  was  out 
in  an  instant  to  draw  on  scraps  of  paper  all 
sorts  of  illustrations  —  modes  of  drawing  up 
water  in  Northern  Italy,  wine-carts,  buffaloes, 
stone-pines,  I  know  not  what.  After  we  had 
all  looked  at  these  drawings,  Phillis  gathered 
them  together,  and  took  them. 

It  is  many  years  since  I  have  seen  thee,  Ed- 
ward Holdsvvorth,  but  thou  wast  a  delightful 
fellow!  Ay,  and  a  good  one  too;  though  much 
sorrow  was  caused  by  thee! 


V9^^ 


PART    III. 


JUvST  after  this  I  went  home  for  a  week's 
hohday.  Everything  was  prospering  there; 
niy  father's  new  partnership  gave  evident 
satisfaction  to  hoth  parties.  There  was  no  dis- 
phiy  of  increased  wealth  in  our  modest  house- 
hold; but  my  mother  had  a  few  extra  comforts 
provided  for  her  by  her  husband.  I  made  ac- 
quaintance with  ]Mr.  and  ?vlrs.  Ellison,  and  first 
saw  prettv  Margaret  Ellison,  who  is  now  my 
wife.  When  I  returned  to  Ellham,  I  found  that 
a  step  was  decided  upon,  which  had  been  in 
contemplation  for  some  time:  that  Iloldsworth 
and  I  should  remove  our  (juartcrs  to  Hornby; 
our  daily  piesence,  and  as  much  of  our  time  as 
8  113 


114  COUSIN   PHILLIS. 

possible,  being  required  for  the  completion  of 
the  line  at  that  end. 

Of  course  this  led  to  greater  facility  of  in- 
tercourse with  the  Hope  Farm  people.  We 
could  easily  walk  out  there  after  our  day's 
work  was  done,  and  spend  a  balmy  evening 
hour  or  two,  and  yet  return  before  the  sum- 
mer's twilight  had  quite  faded  away.  Many  a 
time,  indeed,  we  would  fain  have  stayed 
longer  —  the  open  air,  the  fresh  and  pleasant 
country,  m.ade  so  agreeable  a  contrast  to  the 
close,  hot  town  lodgings  which  I  shared  with 
Mr.  Holdsworth;  but  early  hours,  both  at  eve 
and  morn,  were  an  imperative  necessity  with 
the  minister,  and  he  made  no  scruple  at  turning 
either,  or  both  of  us,  out  of  the  house  directly 
after  evening  prayer,  or  "exercise,"  as  he  called 
it.  The  remembrance  of  many  a  happy  day, 
and  of  several  little  scenes,  comes  back  upon 
me  as  I  think  of  that  summer.  They  rise  like 
pictures  to  my  memory,  and  in  this  way  I  can 
date  their  succession;  for  I  know  that  corn- 
harvest  must  have  come  after  haymaking, 
apple-gathering  after  corn-harvest. 


A   STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.      II5 

The  removal  to  Hornby  took  up  some  time, 
during  wiiicli  we  had  neither  of  us  any  leisure 
to  go  out  to  the  Hope  Farm.  Mr.  Holdsworth 
had  been  out  there  once  during  my  absence  at 
home.  One  sultry  evening,  when  work  was 
done,  he  proposed  our  walking  out  and  paying 
the  Holmans  a  visit.  It  so  happened  that  I 
had  omitted  to  write  my  usual  weekly  letter 
home  in  our  press  of  business,  and  I  wished  to 
finish  that  before  going  out.  Then  he  said 
that  he  would  go,  and  that  I  could  follow  him 
if  I  liked.  This  I  did  in  about  an  hour;  the 
weather  was  so  oppressive,  I  remember,  that  I 
took  off  my  coat  as  I  walked,  and  hung  it  over 
my  arm.  All  the  doors  and  windows  at  the 
farm  were  open  wlien  I  arrived  there,  and 
every  tiny  leaf  on  the  trees  was  still.  The 
silence  of  tlie  place  was  profound ;  at  first  I 
thought  that  it  was  entirely  descrtetl;  but  just 
as  I  drew  near  the  door  I  heard  a  weak,  sweet 
voice  begin  to  sing;  it  was  cousin  Ilolman,  all 
by  herself  in  the  Iiouse-jilace,  piping  up  a 
hymti,  as  she  knitted  away  in  the  clouded  light. 
She   ga\e   me   a   kindly  welcome,  and  poured 


Il6  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

out  all  the  small  domestic  news  of  the  fortnight 
past  upon  me,  and,  in  return,  I  told  her  about 
my  own  people  and  my  visit  at  home. 

"  Where   are   the  rest?"  at  length  I  asked. 

Betty  and  the  men  were  in  the  field  helping 
with  the  last  load  of  hay,  for  the  minister  said 
there  would  be  rain  before  the  morning.  Yes, 
and  the  minister  himself,  and  Phillis,  and  Mr. 
Holdsworth  were  all  there  helping.  She 
thought  that  she  herself  could  have  done  some- 
thing; but  perhaps  she  was  the  least  fit  for 
haymaking  of  anyone;  and  somebody  must 
stay  at  home  and  take  care  of  the  house,  there 
were  so  many  tramps  about;  if  I  had  not  had 
something  to  do  with  the  railroad  she  would 
have  called  them  navvies.  I  asked  her  if  she 
minded  being  left  alone,  as  I  should  like  to  go 
and  help;  and  having  her  full  and  glad  per- 
mission to  leave  her  alone,  I  went  off,  following 
her  directions:  through  the  farmyard,  past  the 
cattle-pond,  into  the  ash-field,  beyond  into  the 
higher  field  with  two  holly-bushes  in  the  mid- 
dle. I  arrived  there:  there  was  Betty  with  all 
the   farming    men,  and   a   cleared   field,  and  a 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1 17 

heavily  laden  cart;  one  man  at  the  top  of  the 
gi^eat  pile  ready  to  catch  the  fragrant  hay 
which  the  others  threw  up  to  him  with  their 
pitchforks;  a  little  heap  of  cast-off  clothes  in  a 
corner  of  the  field  (for  the  heat,  even  at  seven 
o'clock,  was  insufferable),  a  few  cans  and  bas- 
kets, and  Rover  lying  by  them  panting,  and 
keeping  watch.  Plenty  of  loud,  hearty,  cheer- 
ful talking;  but  no  minister,  no  Phillis,  no  Mr. 
Holdsworth.  Betty  saw  me  first,  and  under- 
standing who  it  was  that  I  was  in  search  of, 
she  came  toward  me. 

"  They're  out  yonder  —  agait  wi'  them 
things  o'   jSIeaster   lloldsworth's." 

So  "out  yonder"  I  went;  out  onto  a  broad 
upland  common,  full  of  red  sandbanks,  and 
sweeps  and  hollows;  bordered  by  dark  firs, 
purple  in  the  coming  shadows,  but  near  at  hand 
all  ablaze  with  flowering  gorse,  or,  as  we  call 
it  in  the  south,  furze-bushes,  which,  seen 
against  the  belt  of  distant  trees,  appeared  bril- 
liantly golden.  On  tliis  heath,  a  little  way 
from  the  field-gate,  I  saw  the  thiee.  I  counted 
their  heads,  joined  together   in   an   eager  group 


Ii8  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

over  Iloldsworth's  theodolite.  He  was  teach- 
ing the  minister  the  practical  art  of  survey- 
ing and  taking  a  level.  I  was  wanted  to  assist, 
and  was  quickly  set  to  work  to  hold  the  chain. 
Phillis  was  as  intent  as  her  father;  she  had 
hardly  time  to  greet  me,  so  desirous  was  she  to 
hear  some  answer  to  her  father's  question. 

So  we  went  on,  the  dark  clouds  still  gather- 
ing, for  perhaps  five  minutes  after  mv  arrival. 
Then  came  the  blinding  lightning  and  the 
rumble  and  quick-following  rattling  peal  of 
thunder  right  over  our  heads.  It  came  sooner 
than  I  expected,  sooner  than  they  had  looked 
for;  the  rain  delayed  not;  it  came  pouring 
down;  and  what  were  we  to  do  for  shelter? 
Phillis  had  nothing  on  but  her  indoor  things  — 
no  bonnet,  no  shawl.  Quick  as  the  darting 
lightning  around  us,  Holdsworth  took  off  his 
coat  and  v\^rapped  it  around  her  neck  and 
shoulders,  and,  almos^t  without  a  word,  hurried 
us  all  into  such  poor  shelter  as  one  of  the  over- 
hanging sandbanks  could  give.  There  we 
were,  cowered  down,  close  together,  Phillis 
innermost,  almost  too  tightly   packed    to  free 


A   STORK   OF  E.WGLISH  LOVE.       I  19 

her  arms  enough  to  divest  herself  of  the  coat, 
which  she,  in  her  turn,  tried  to  put  Hghtly 
over  Holdsworth's  shoulders.  In  doing  so, 
she   touched  his  shirt. 

"Oh,  how  wet  you  are!"  she  cried  in 
pitying  dismay;  "and  you've  hardly  got  over 
your  fever!  Oh,  Mr.  Iloldsworth,  I  am  so 
sorry!"  He  turned  his  head  a  little,  smiling  at 
her. 

"  If  I  do  catch  cold,  it  is  all  my  fault  for 
having  deluded  you  into  staying  out  here;"  but 
she  only  murmured  again,  "  I  am  so  sorry." 

The  minister  spoke  now.  "  It  is  a  regular 
downpour.  Please  God  that  the  hay  is  saved! 
liut  there  is  no  likelihood  of  its  ceasing,  and  I 
had  better  go  home  at  once,  and  send  you  all 
some  wraps;  umbrellas  will  not  be  safe  with 
yonder  thunder  and  lightning." 

Both  Iloldsworth  and  I  offered  to  go  in- 
stead of  him;  but  he  was  resolved,  although 
perhaps  it  would  have  l)een  wiser  if  Holds- 
worth,  wet  as  he  already  was,  had  kept  him- 
self in  exercise.  As  he  moved  off,  Phillis 
crept  out,  and   could   see  on  to  the  storm-swept 


COUSIN'  PHILLtS. 


heath.  Part  of  Hoklsworth's  apparatus  still 
remained  exposed  to  all  the  rain.  Before  we 
could  have  any  warning,  she  had  rushed  out 
of  the  shelter  and  collected  the  various  things, 
and  brought  them  back  in  triumph  to  where 
we  crouched.  Holdsworth  had  stood  up,  un- 
certain whether  to  go  to  her  assistance  or  not. 
She  came  running  back,  her  long,  lovely  hair 
floating  and  dripping,  her  eyes  glad  and  bright, 
and  her  color  freshened  to  a  glow  of  health  by 
the  exercise  and  the  rain. 

"  Now,  Miss  Holman,  that's  what  I  call 
willful,"  said  Holdsworth,  as  she  gave  them  to 
him.  "No,  I  won't  thank  you"  (his  looks 
were  thanking  her  all  the  time).  "My  little 
bit  of  dampness  annoyed  you,  because  you 
thought  I  had  got  wet  in  your  service;  so  you 
were  determined  to  make  me  as  uncomfort- 
able as  you  were  yourself.  It  was  an  unchris- 
tian piece  of  revenge!" 

His  tone  of  badinage  (as  the  French  call 
it)  would  have  been  palpable  enough  to  any- 
one accustomed  to  the  world;  but  Phillis  was 
not,  and  it  distressed  or  rather  bewildered  her. 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       121 

"  Unchristian"  had  to  her  a  very  serious  mean- 
ing; it  was  not  a  word  to  be  used  Hghtly;  and 
though  she  did  not  exactly  understand  what 
wrong  it  was  that  she  was  accused  of  doing, 
she  was  evidently  desirous  to  throw  off  the 
imputation.  At  first  her  earnestness  to  dis- 
claim unkind  motives  amused  Holdsworth; 
while  his  light  continuance  of  the  joke  per- 
plexed her  still  more;  but  at  last  he  said  some- 
thing gravely,  and  in  too  low  a  tone  for  me  to 
hear,  which  made  her  all  at  once  become  silent, 
and  called  out  her  blushes.  After  awhile,  the 
minister  came  back,  a  moving  mass  of  shawls, 
cloaks,  and  umbrellas.  Phillis  kept  very  close 
to  her  father's  side  on  our  return  to  the  farm. 
vShe  appeared  to  me  to  be  shrinking  away  from 
Holdsworth,  while  he  had  not  the  slightest 
variation  in  his  manner  from  what  it  usually 
was  in  his  graver  moods;  kind,  protecting,  and 
thoughtful  toward  her.  Of  course,  there  was 
a  great  commotion  about  our  wet  clothes;  but 
I  name  the  little  events  of  that  evening  now 
because  I  wondered  at  the  time  what  he  had 
said    in    that   low    voice    to    silence    Phillis    so 


122  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

effectually,  and  because,  in  thinking  of  their 
intercourse  by  the  light  of  future  events,  that 
evening  stands  out  with  some  prominence. 

I  have  said  that  after  our  removal  to  Horn- 
by our  communications  with  the  farm  became 
almost  of  daily  occurrence.  Cousin  Holman 
and  I  were  the  two  who  had  least  to  do  with 
this  intimacy.  After  Mr.  Holdsworth  regained 
his  health,  he  too  often  talked  above  her  head 
in  intellectual  matters,  and  too  often  in  his 
light  bantering  tone  for  her  to  feel  quite  at  her 
ease  with  him.  I  really  believe  that  he  adopted 
this  latter  tone  in  speaking  to  her  because  he 
did  not  know  what  to  talk  about  to  a  purely 
motherly  woman,  whose  intellect  had  never 
been  cultivated,  and  whose  loving  heart  was 
entirely  occupied  with  her  husband,  her  child, 
her  household  affairs,  and,  perhaps,  a  little 
with  the  concerns  of  the  members  of  her  hus- 
band's congregation,  because  they,  in  a  way, 
belonged  to  her  husband.  I  had  noticed  be- 
fore that  she  had  fleeting  shadows  of  jealousy 
even  of  Phillis,  when  her  daughter  and  her 
husband  appeared  to  have  strong  interests  and 


A   STOUT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         123 

sympathies  in  things  which  were  quite  beyond 
her  comprehension.  I  had  noticed  it  in  my  first 
acquaintance  with  them,  I  say,  and  had  ad- 
mired the  deUcate  tact  which  made  the  min- 
ister, on  such  occasions,  bring  the  conversation 
back  to  such  subjects  as  tliose  on  which  his 
wife,  with  her  practical  experience  of  every- 
day Hfe,  was  an  authority;  while  Phillis,  de- 
voted to  her  father,  unconsciously  followed  his 
lead,  totally  unaware,  in  her  filial  reverence,  of 
his  motive  for  doing  so. 

To  return  to  Holdsworth.  The  minister 
had  at  more  than  one  time  spoken  of  him  to 
me  with  slight  distrust,  principally  occasioned 
by  the  suspicion  that  his  careless  words  were 
not  always  those  of  soberness  and  truth.  But 
it  was  more  as  a  protest  against  tlic  fascination 
which  the  younger  inan  evidently  exercised 
over  the  elder  one  —  more  as  it  were  to 
strengthen  himself  against  yielding  to  this  fas- 
cination—  that  the  minister  spoke  out  to  me 
about  this  failing  of  I  folds  worth's,  as  it  ap- 
peared to  him.  In  retuin  Holdsworth  was 
subdued     by     the    minister's     uprightness    and 


124  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

goodness,  and  delighted  with  his  clear  intel- 
lect—  his  strong,  healthy  craving  after  further 
knowledge,  I  never  met  two  men  who  took 
more  thorough  pleasure  and  relish  in  each 
other's  society.  To  Phillis  his  relation  con- 
tinued that  of  an  elder  brother;  he  directed  her 
studies  into  new  paths,  he  j^atiently  drew  out 
the  expression  of  many  of  her  thoughts  and 
perplexities,  and  unformed  theories  —  scarcely 
ever  now  falling  into  the  vein  of  banter  which 
she  was  so  slow  to  understand. 

One  day  —  harvest-time  —  he  had  been 
drawing  on  a  loose  piece  of  paper  —  sketching 
ears  of  corn,  sketching  carts  drawn  by  bullocks 
and  laden  with  grapes  —  all  the  time  talking 
with  Phillis  and  me,  cousin  Holman  putting  in 
her  not  pertinent  remarks,  when  suddenly  he 
said  to  Phillis, — 

"Keep  your  head  still;  I  see  a  sketch!  1 
have  often  tried  to  draw  your  head  from  mem- 
ory, and  failed;  but  I  think  I  can  do  it  now. 
If  I  succeed  I  will  give  it  to  your  mother. 
You  would  like  a  portrait  of  your  daughter  as 
Ceres,  would  you  not,  ma'am?" 


A   STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       125 

"  I  should  like  a  picture  of  her;  yes,  very 
much,  thank  you,  Mr.  Holdsworth ;  but  if  you 
put  that  straw  in  her  hair"  (he  was  holding 
some  wheat  ears  above  her  passive  head,  look- 
ing at  the  effect  with  ail  artistic  eye),  "you'll 
ruffle  her  hair.  Phillis,  my  dear,  if  you're  to 
have  your  picture  taken,  go  upstairs  and  brush 
your  hair  smooth." 

"  Not  on  any  account.  I  beg  your  pardon, 
but  I  want  hair  loosely  flowing." 

He  began  to  draw,  looking  intently  at 
Phillis;  I  could  see  this  stare  of  his  discom- 
posed her  —  her  color  came  and  went,  her 
breath  quickened  with  the  consciousness  of 
his  regard;  at  last,  when  he  said,  "Please  look 
at  me  for  a  minute  or  two,  I  want  to  get  in  the 
eyes,"  she  looked  up  at  him,  quivered,  and  sud- 
denly got  up  and  left  the  room.  He  did  not 
say  a  word,  but  went  on  with  some  other  part 
of  the  drawing;  his  silence  was  unnatural,  and 
his  dark  cheek  blanched  a  little.  Cousin  Hol- 
man  looked  up  from  her  work,  and  put  her 
spectacles  down. 

"What's  the  matter?    Where  is  she  <rone?" 


126  COUSIX  PHTLLTS. 

Holdsworth  never  uttered  a  word,  but  went 
on  drawing.  I  felt  obliged  to  say  sometbing; 
it  was  stupid  enougb,  but  stupidity  was  better 
than  silence  just  then. 

"  ril  go  and  call  her,"  said  I.  So  I  went 
into  the  hall,  and  to  the  bottom  of  the  stairs; 
but  just  as  I  was  going  to  call  Phillis,  she  came 
down  swiftly  with  her  bonnet  on,  and  saying, 
"  I'm  going  to  father  in  the  five-acre,"  passed 
out  by  the  open  "rector,"  right  in  front  of  the 
house-place  windows,  and  out  at  the  little  white 
side-gate.  She  had  been  seen  by  her  mother 
and  Holdsworth,  as  she  passed ;  so  there  was 
no  need  for  explanation,  onlv  cousin  Holman 
and  I  had  a  long  discussion  as  to  whether  she 
could  have  found  the  room  too  hot,  or  what 
had  occasioned  her  sudden  departure.  Holds- 
worth  was  very  quiet  during  all  the  rest  of  that 
day;  nor  did  he  resume  the  portrait-taking  by 
his  own  desire,  onlv  at  my  cousin  Holman's 
request  the  next  time  that  he  came;  and  then 
he  said  he  should  not  require  any  more  formal 
sittings  for  onlv  such  a  slight  sketch  as  he  felt 
himself  capable   of   making.      Phillis  was  just 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       12) 

the  same  as  ever  the  next  time  I  saw  her  after 
her  abrupt  passing  me  in  the  hall.  She  never 
gave  any  explanation  of  her  rush  out  of  the 
room. 

So  all  things  went  on,  at  least  as  far  as  my 
observation  reached  at  the  time,  or  memory  can 
recall  now,  till  the  great  apple-gathering  of  the 
year.  The  nights  were  frosty,  the  mornings 
and  evenings  were  misty,  but  at  mid-day  all 
was  sunny  and  bright,  and  it  was  one  mid-day 
that  both  of  us  being  on  the  line  near  Heath- 
bridge,  and  knowing  that  they  were  gathering 
apples  at  the  farm,  we  resolved  to  spend  the 
men's  dinner-hour  in  going  over  there.  We 
found  the  great  clothes-baskets  full  of  apples, 
scenting  the  house,  and  stopping  up  the  way; 
and  an  universal  air  of  merry  contentment  with 
this,  the  final  produce  of  the  year.  The  yellow 
leaves  hung  on  the  trees  ready  to  flutter  down 
at  the  slightest  jniff  of  air;  tiie  great  bushes  of 
Michaelmas  daisies  in  the  kitchen  garden  were 
making  their  last  show  of  flowers.  We  must 
needs  taste  the  fruit  off  the  different  trees,  and 
pass  our  judgment  as  to   their   flavor;  and   we 


128  COUSIN    PHILLIS. 

went  away  with  our  pockets  stuffed  with  those 
we  liked  best.  As  we  had  passed  to  the  or- 
chard, Holdsworth  had  admired  and  spoken 
about  some  flower  which  he  saw;  it  so  hap- 
pened he  had  never  seen  this  old-fashioned 
kind  since  the  days  of  his  boyhood.  I  do  not 
know  whether  he  had  thought  anything  more 
about  this  chance  speech  of  his,  but  I  know  I 
had  not — when  Phillis,  who  had  been  missing 
just  at  the  last  moment  of  our  hurried  visit,  re- 
appeared, with  a  little  nosegay  of  this  same 
flower,  which  she  was  tying  up  with  a  blade 
of  grass.  She  offered  it  to  Holdsworth  as  he 
stood  with  her  father  on  the  point  of  departure 
I  saw  their  faces.  I  saw  for  the  first  time  an 
unmistakable  look  of  love  in  his  black  eyes;  it 
was  more  than  gratitude  for  the  little  attention; 
it  was  tender  and  beseeching  —  passionate. 
She  shrank  from  it  in  confusion,  her  glance 
fell  on  me;  and,  partly  to  hide  her  emotion, 
partly  out  of  real  kindness  at  what  might  ap- 
pear ungracious  neglect  of  an  older  friend,  she 
flew  off  to  gather  me  a  few  late-blooming 
China  roses.       But    it  was  the    first  time    she 


A   STORy  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       129 

had  ever    done     anything     of     the     kind     for 
me. 

We  had  to  walk  fast  to  be  back  on  the  line 
before  the  men's  return,  so  we  spoke  but  Httle 
to  each  other,  and  of  course  the  afternoon  was 
too  much  occupied  for  us  to  have  any  talk.  In 
the  evening  we  went  back  to  our  joint  lodg- 
ings in  Hornby.  There,  on  a  table,  lay  a  letter 
for  Holdsworth,  which  had  been  forwarded  to 
him  from  Eltham.  As  our  tea  was  ready,  and 
I  had  had  nothing  to  eat  since  morning,  I  fell 
to  directly  without  paying  much  attention  to 
my  companion  as  he  opened  and  read  his 
letter.  lie  was  very  silent  for  a  few  minutes; 
at  length  he  said, — 

"  Old  fellow  I   I'm  going  to  leave  you!" 
"Leave  me!"  said  I.     "How.?     When.?" 
"  This  letter   ought   to  have   come  to  hand 
sooner.      It  is    from   Greathed,  the    engineer" 
(Greathed    was  well  known  in    those   days;   he 
is  dead  now,  and  his  name  half-forgotten);  "he 
wants  to  see   me   about  some  business;  in  fact, 
I    may   as   well    tell    you,  Paul,  this  letter   con- 
tains a  very  advantageous   proposal  for  me  to 
9 


130  COUSIN  P HILL  IS. 


go  out  to  Canada,  and  superintend  the  making 
of  a  line  there." 

I  was  in  utter  chsmay. 

"But  what  will  our  company  say  to  that?" 

"  Oh,  Greathed  has  the  superintendence  of 
this  line,  30U  know;  and  he  is  going  to  be  en- 
gineer-in-chief to  this  Canadian  line;  many  of 
the  shareholders  in  this  company  are  going  in 
for  the  other,  so  I  fancy  they  will  make  no  dif- 
ficulty in  following  Greathed's  lead ;  he  says 
he  has  a  young  man  ready  to  put  in  my  place." 

"I  hate  him,"  said  I. 

"  Thank   you,"  said  Holdsworth,  laughing. 

"  But  you  must  not,"  he  resumed,  "for  this 
is  a  very  good  thing  for  me,  and,  of  course,  if 
no  one  can  be  found  to  take  my  inferior  work, 
I  can't  be  spared  to  take  the  superior.  I  only 
wish  I  had  received  this  letter  a  day  sooner. 
Every  hour  is  of  consequence,  for  Greathed 
says  they  are  threatening  a  rival  line.  Do  you 
know,  Paul,  I  almost  fancy  I  must  go  up  to- 
night? I  can  take  an  engine  back  to  Eltham, 
and  catch  the  night  train.  I  should  not  like 
Greathed  to  think  me  lukewarm." 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       131 

"  But  you'll  come  back?"  I  asked,  distressed 
at  the  thought  of  this  sudden  parting-. 

"  Oh,  yes!  At  least  I  hope  so.  They  may 
want  me  to  go  out  by  the  next  steamer,  that 
will  be  on  Saturday."  He  began  to  eat  and 
drink  standing,  but  I  think  he  was  quite  un- 
conscious of  the  nature  of  either  his  food  or 
his  drink. 

"I  will  go  to-night.  Actiyity  and  readiness 
go  a  long  way  in  our  profession.  Remember 
that,  my  boy!  I  hope  I  shall  come  back,  but 
if  I  don't,  be  sure  and  recollect  all  the  words 
of  wisdom  that  haye  fallen  from  my  lips. 
Now  where's  the  portmanteau?  If  I  can  gain 
half  an  hour  for  a  gathering  up  of  my  things 
in  Eltham,  so  much  the  better.  I'm  clear  of 
debt  anyhow;  and  what  I  owe  for  my  lodg- 
ings you  can  pay  for  me  out  of  my  quarter's 
salary,  due  Noycmber  4th." 

"Then  you  don't  think  you  will  come 
back?  "  I  said,  despondingly. 

"  I  \yill  come  back  sometime,  neyer  fear," 
said  he  kindly.  "  I  may  be  back  in  a  couple 
of  days,   haying   been    fountl    incompetent   for 


132  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

the  Canadian  work;  or  I  may  not  be  wanted 
to  go  out  so  soon  as  I  now  anticipate.  Any- 
how you  don't  suppose  I  am  going  to  forget 
you,  Paul  —  this  work  out  there  ought  not  to 
take  me  above  two  years,  and  perhaps,  after 
that,  we  may  be  emploj'ed  together  again." 

Perhaps!  I  had  very  Httle  hope.  The 
same  kind  of  happy  days  never  returns.  How- 
ever, I  did  all  I  could  in  helping  him;  clothes, 
papers,  books,  instruments;  how  we  pushed 
and  struggled  —  how  I  stuffed !  All  was  done 
in  a  much  shorter  time  than  we  had  calculated 
upon,  when  I  had  run  down  to  the  sheds  to 
order  the  engine.  I  was  going  to  drive  him  to 
Eltham.  We  sat  ready  for  a  summons.  Holds- 
worth  took  up  the  little  nosegay  that  he  had 
brought  away  from  the  Hope  Farm,  and  had 
laid  on  the  mantel-piece  on  first  coming  into 
the  room.  He  smelt  at  it,  and  caressed  it 
with  his  lips. 

"  What  grieves  me  is  that  I  did  not  know  — 
that  I  have  not  said  good-by  to  —  to  them." 

He  spoke  in  a  grave  tone,  the  shadow  of 
the  coming  separation  falling  upon  him  at  last. 


A   STO/fr  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       133 

"  I  will  tell  them,"  said  I.  "  I  am  sure  they 
will  be  very  sorry."     Then  we  were  silent. 

"I  never  liked  any  family  so  much." 

"  I  knew  you  would  like  them." 

"How  one's  thoughts  change,  —  this  morn- 
ing I  was  full  of  a  hope,  Paul."  He  paused, 
and  then  he  said, — 

"  You  put  that  sketch  in  carefully  ?  " 

"  That  outline  of  a  head  ?"  asked  I.  But  I 
knew  he  meant  an  abortive  sketch  of  Phillis, 
which  had  not  been  successful  enough  for  him 
to  complete  it  with  shading  or  coloring. 

"Yes.  What  a  sweet  innocent  face  it  is! 
and  yet  so  —    Oh,  dear!" 

He  sighed  and  got  up,  his  hands  in  his 
pockets,  to  walk  up  and  down  the  room  in 
evident  disturbance  of  mind.  He  suddenly 
stopped  opposite  to  me. 

"  You'll  tell  them  how  it  all  was.  Be  sure 
and  tell  the  good  minister  that  T  was  so  sorry 
not  to  wish  him  goo(l-i)\-,  and  to  thank  him 
and  his  wife  for  all  thcii'  kindness.  As  for 
Phillis, —  please  (jod  in  two  vcai's  I'll  be  back 
and  tell  her  myself  all  in  tn\-  heart." 


134  COUSIN  PHILLTS. 

"You  love  Phillis,  then?"  said  1. 

"  Love  her!  —  Yes,  that  I  do.  Who  could 
help  it,  seeing  her  as  I  have  done?  Her  char- 
acter as  unusual  and  rare  as  her  beauty!  God 
bless  her!  God  keep  her  in  her  high  tranquil- 
lity, her  pure  innocence.  —  Two  years!  It  is 
a  long  time.  —  But  she  lives  in  such  seclusion, 
almost  like  the  sleeping  beauty,  Paul"  —  (he 
was  smiling  now,  though  a  minute  before  I 
had  thought  him  on  the  verge  of  tears)  — 
"  but  I  shall  come  back  like  a  prince  f lom 
Canada,  and  waken  her  to  my  love.  I  can't 
help  hoping  that  it  won't  be  difficult,  eh, 
Paul?" 

This  touch  of  coxcombry  displeased  me  a 
little,  and  I  made  no  answer.  He  w^ent  on, 
half  apologetically,  — 

"You  sec,  the  salary  they  offer  me  is  large; 
and  beside  that,  this  experience  will  give  me  a 
name  which  will  entitle  me  to  expect  a  still 
larger  in  any  future  undertaking." 

"  That  won't  influence  Phillis." 

"No!  but  it  will  make  me  more  eligible 
in  the  eves  of  her  father  and  mother." 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.      135 

I  made  no  answer. 

"  You  give  me  your  best  wishes,  Paul," 
said  he,  ahnost  pleading.  "  You  would  like 
me  for  a  cousin  ?  " 

I  heard  the  scream  and  whistle  of  the  en- 
gine ready  down  at  the  sheds. 

"Ay,  that  1  should,"  I  replied,  suddenly 
softened  toward  my  friend  now  that  he  was 
going  away.  "  I  wish  you  were  to  be  married 
to-morrow,  and  I  were  to  be  best  man." 

"  Thank  you,  lad.  Xow  for  this  cursed 
portmanteau  (how  the  minister  would  be 
shocked);  but  it  is  heavy!"  and  off  we  sped 
into  the  darkness. 

lie  only  just  caught  the  night  train  at 
Eltham,  and  I  slept,  desolately  enough,  at  my 
old  lodgings  at  Miss  Dawson's,  for  that  night. 
Of  course  the  next  few  days  1  was  busier  than 
e\er, doing  both  his  work  and  my  own.  Then 
came  a  letter  from  him,  vcrv  short  and  affec- 
tionate. He  was  going  out  in  the  Saturday 
steamer,  as  he  had  more  than  half  expected; 
and  by  the  following  Monday  the  man 
wiio    was    to     succeed     him    ^youl(l     be     down 


136  COUSIN  PHI  J. LIS. 

at  Eltham.  There  was  a  P.  S.,  with  only 
these  words: — 

"  My  nosegay  goes  with  me  to  Canada,  but 
I  do  not  need  it  to  remind  me  of  Hope  Farm." 

Saturday  came;  but  it  was  very  hite  before 
I  could  go  out  to  the  farm.  It  was  a  frosty 
night,  the  stars  shone  clear  above  me,  and  the 
road  was  crisping  beneath  my  feet.  They 
must  have  heard  my  footsteps  before  I  got  up 
to  the  house.  They  were  sitting  at  their  usual 
employments  in  the  house-jolace  when  I  went 
in.  Phillis'  eyes  went  beyond  me  in  their  look 
of  welcome,  and  then  fell  in  quiet  disappoint- 
ment on  her  work. 

"And  where's  Mr.  Holdsworth?"  asked 
cousin  Holman,  in  a  minute  or  two.  "  I  hope 
his  cold  is  not  worse  —  I  did  not  like  his  short 
cough." 

I  laughed  awkwardly;  for  I  felt  that  I  was 
the  bearer  of  unpleasant  news. 

"  His  cold  had  i?eed  be  better  —  for  he's 
gone  —  gone  away  to  Canada!" 

I  purposely  looked  away  from  Phillis,  as  I 
\hus  abruptly  told  my  news. 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       137 

"  To  Canada!"  said  the  minister. 

"Gone  away!"  said  his  wife. 

But  no  word  from  Phillis. 

"Yes!"  said  I.  "He  found  a  letter  at 
Hornby  when  we  got  home  the  other  night  — 
when  we  got  home  from  here;  he  ought  to 
have  got  it  sooner;  he  was  ordered  to  go  up 
to  London  directly,  and  to  see  some  people 
about  a  new  line  in  Canada,  and  he's  gone  to 
lay  it  down;  he  has  sailed  to-day.  He  was 
sadly  grieved  not  to  have  time  to  come  out  and 
wish  you  all  good-by;  but  he  started  for  Lon- 
don within  two  hours  after  he  got  that  letter. 
He  bade  me  thank  you  most  gratefully  for  all 
your  kindnesses;  he  was  very  sorry  not  to  come 
here  once  again." 

Phillis  got  up  and  left  the  room  with  noise- 
less steps. 

"I  am  very  sorry,"  said  the  minister. 

"  I  am  sure  so  am  I!"  said  cousin  Holman. 
"  I  was  real  fond  of  that  lad  ever  since  I  nursed 
him  last  June  after  that  bad  fevev." 

The  minister  went  on  asking  me  questions 
respecting     Holdsworth's     future     plans,     and 


138  COUSIN  PHTLLIS. 

brought  out  a  large  old-fashioned  atlas,  that  he 
might  find  out  the  exact  places  between  which 
the  new  railroad  was  to  run.  Then  supper 
was  ready ;  it  w'as  always  on  the  table  as  soon 
as  the  clock  on  the  stairs  struck  eight,  and 
down  came  Phillis —  her  face  white  and  set, 
her  dry  6yes  looking  defiance  to  me,  for  I  am 
afraid  I  hurt  her  maidenly  pride  by  my  glance 
of  sympathetic  interest  as  she  entered  the  room. 
Never  a  word  did  she  say  —  never  a  question 
did  she  ask  about  the  absent  friend,  yet  she 
forced  herself  to  talk. 

And  so  it  was  all  the  next  da}'.  She  was 
as  pale  as  could  be,  like  one  who  has  received 
some  shock ;  but  she  would  not  let  me  talk  to 
her,  and  she  tried  hard  to  behave  as  usual.  Two 
or  three  times  I  repeated,  in  public,  the  various 
affectionate  messages  to  the  family  with  which 
I  was  charged  by  Holdsworth;  but  she  took 
no  more  notice  of  them  than  if  my  words  had 
been  empty  air.  And  in  this  mood  I  left  her 
on  the  Sal)bath  evening. 

Mv  new  master  was  not  half  so  indulgent 
as  my  old  one.     lie  kept  up  strict  discijoline  as 


A    STOR7'   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       139 

to  hours,  so  that  it  was  some  time  before  I 
could  again  go  out,  even  to  pay  a  call  at  the 
Hope  Farm. 

It  was  a  cold  misty  evening  in  November. 
The  air,  even  indoors,  seemed  full  of  haze;  yet 
there  was  a  great  log  burning  on  the  hearth, 
which  ought  to  have  made  the  room  cheerful. 
Cousin  Holman  and  Phillis  were  sitting  at  the 
little  round  table  before  the  fire,  working  away 
in  silence.  The  minister  had  his  books  out  on 
the  dresser,  seemingly  deep  in  study,  by  the 
light  of  his  solitary  candle;  perhaps  the  fear  of 
disturbing  him  made  the  unusual  stillness  of 
the  room.  But  a  welcome  was  ready  for  me 
from  all ;  not  noisy,  not  demonstrative  —  that 
it  never  was;  my  damp  wrappers  were  taken 
off,  the  next  meal  was  hastened,  and  a  chair 
placed  for  me  on  one  side  of  the  fire,  so  that  I 
piX'tty  much  c(;mmanded  a  view  of  the  room. 
AIv  eye  caught  on  Phillis,  looking  so  pale  and 
weary,  and  with  a  sort  of  aching  tone  (if  I  may 
call  it  so)  in  her  \oice.  She  was  doing  all  tlie 
accuslonu'd  things  —  fulfilling  small  household 
duties,  but  somehow   differently  —  I    can't  tell 


140  COUSIJV  PHItJJS. 

you  how,  for  she  was  just  as  deft  and  quick  in 
her  movements,  only  the  Hght  spring  was  gone 
out  of  them.  Cousin  Holman  began  to  ques- 
tion me;  even  the  minister  put  aside  his  books, 
and  came  and  stood  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
fireplace,  to  hear  what  waft  of  intelligence  I 
brought.  I  had  first  to  tell  them  why  I  had 
not  been  to  see  them  for  so  long  —  more  than 
five  weeks.  The  answer  was  simple  enough; 
business  and  the  necessity  of  attending  strictly 
to  the  orders  of  a  new  superintendent,  who  had 
not  yet  learned  trust,  much  less  indulgence. 
The  minister  nodded  his  approval  of  my  con- 
duct, and  said, — 

"Right,  Paul!  '  Servants,  obey  in  all  things 
your  masters  according  to  the  flesh.'  I  have 
had  my  fears  lest  you  had  too  much  license 
under  Edward  Holdsworth." 

"Ah,"  said  cousin  Holman,  "poor  Mr. 
Holdsworth,  he'll  be  on  the  salt  seas  by  this 
time!" 

"  No,  indeed,"  said  I,  "he's  landed.  I  have 
had  a  letter  from  him  from  Halifax," 

Immediately  a  shower  of  questions  fell  thick 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       141 

upon  me.  When?  How?  What  was  he 
doing?  How  did  he  like  it?  What  sort  of  a 
voj-^age?  etc. 

"  Many  is  the  time  we  have  thought  of  him 
when  the  wind  was  blowing  so  hard;  the  old 
quince  tree  is  blown  down,  Paul,  that  on  the 
right  hand  of  the  great  pear  tree;  it  was  blown 
down  last  Monday  week,  and  it  was  that  night 
that  I  asked  the  minister  to  pray  in  an  especial 
manner  for  all  them  that  went  down  in  ships 
upon  the  great  deejD,  and  he  said  then  that  Mr. 
Holdsworth  might  be  already  landed;  but  I 
said,  even  if  the  prayer  did  not  fit  him,  it  was 
sure  to  be  fitting  somebody  out  at  sea,  who 
would  need  the  Lord's  care.  Both  Phillis  and 
I  thought  he  would  be  a  month  on  the 
seas." 

Phillis  began  to  speak,  but  her  voice  did 
not  come  rightly  at  first.  It  was  a  little  higher 
pitched  than  usual,  when  she  said, — 

"We  thought  he  would  be  a  month  if  he 
went  in  a  sailing-vessel,  or  perhaps  longer.  I 
suppose  he  went  in  a  steamer?" 

"  Old   Obadiah   Grimsliaw   was  more   than 


142  COUSIN  PlIILLIS. 

six  weeks  in  getting  to  America,"  observed 
cousin  Holman. 

"  I  presume  he  cannot  as  yet  tell  how  he 
likes  his  new  work?"  asked  the  minister. 

"No!  he  is  but  just  landed;  it  is  but  one 
page  long.     I'll  read  it  to  you,  shall  I  ?  — 

Dear  Paul: 

We  are  safe  on  shore  after  a  rough  passage. 
Thought  you  would  like  to  hear  this,  but  homeward- 
bound  steamer  is  making  signals  for  letters.  Will 
write  again  soon.  It  seems  a  year  since  I  left  Hornby. 
Longer  since  I  was  at  the  farm.  I  have  got  my  nose- 
gay safe.     Remember  me  to  the  llolmans. 

Yours, 

E.  H." 

"  That's  not  much,  certainly,"  said  the  min- 
ister. "  But  it's  a  comfort  to  know  he's  on 
land  these  blowy  nights." 

Phillis  said  nothing.  She  kept  her  head 
bent  down  over  her  work;  but  I  don't  think 
she  put  a  stitch  in  while  I  was  reading  the  let- 
ter. I  wondered  if  she  understood  what  nose- 
gay was  meant;  but  I  could  not  tell.  When 
next  she  lifted  up  her  face  there  were  two 
spots  of  brilliant  color  on  the  cheeks  that  had 
been    so    jDale  before.     After   I   had  spent  an 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       143 

hour  or  two  there,  I  was  bound  to  return  back 
to  Hornby.  I  told  them  I  did  not  know  when 
I  could  come  again,  as  we  —  by  which  I  mean 
the  company  —  had  undertaken  tlie  Hensley- 
dale  line;  that  branch  for  which  poor  Holds- 
worth  was  surveying  when  he  caught  his  fever. 

"But  you'll  have  a  holiday  at  Christmas," 
said  my  cousin,  "  Surely  they'll  not  be  such 
heathens  as  to  work  you  then?" 

"Perhaps  the  lad  will  be  going  home,"  said 
the  minister, as  if  to  mitigate  his  wife's  urgency; 
but  for  all  that,  I  believe  he  wanted  me  to 
come.  Phillis  fixed  her  eyes  on  me  with  a 
wistful  expression,  hard  to  resist.  But,  indeed, 
I  had  no  thought  of  resisting.  Under  my  new 
master  I  had  no  hope  of  a  holiday  long  enough 
to  enable  me  to  go  to  Birmingham  and  sec  my 
parents  with  any  comfort;  and  nothing  could 
be  pleasanter  to  me  than  to  find  mvself  at  home 
at  my  cousin's  for  a  day  or  two,  then.  vSo  it 
was  fixed  tliat  we  were  to  meet  in  Hornby 
Chapel  on  Christmas  Day,  and  that  I  was  to 
accompany  them  home  after  service,  and  if 
possible  to  stay  over  the  next  day. 


144  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

I  was  not  able  to  get  to  chapel  till  late 
on  the  appointed  day,  and  so  I  took  a  seat  near 
the  door  in  considerable  shame,  although  it 
really  was  not  my  fault.  When  the  service  was 
ended,  I  went  and  stood  in  the  porch  to  await 
the  coming  out  of  my  cousins.  Some  worthy 
people  belonging  to  the  congregation  clustered 
into  a  group  just  where  I  stood,  and  exchanged 
the  good  wishes  of  the  season.  It  had  just  be- 
gun to  snow,  and  this  occasioned  a  little  delay, 
and  they  fell  into  further  conversation.  I  was 
not  attending  to  what  was  not  meant  for  me  to 
hear,  till  I  caught  the  name  of  Phillis  Holman. 
And  then  I  listened ;  where  was  the  harm  ? 

"I  never  saw  any  one  so  changed!" 

"  I  asked  Mrs.  Holman,"  quoth  another,  " '  is 
Phillis  well? '  and  she  just  said  she  had  been 
having  a  cold  which  had  pulled  her  down;  she 
did  not  seem  to  think  anything  of  it." 

"  They  had  best  take  care  of  her,"  said  one 
of  the  oldest  of  the  good  ladies;  "Phillis  comes 
of  a  family  as  is  not  long-lived.  Her  mother's 
sister,  Lydia  Green,  her  own  aunt  as  was,  died  of 
a  decline  just  when  she  was  about  this  lass's  age." 


A  STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE,      145 

This  ill-omened  talk  was  broken  in  upon 
by  the  coming  out  of  the  minister,  his  wife 
and  daughter,  and  the  consequent  interchange 
of  Christmas  compliments.  I  had  had  a  shock, 
and  felt  heavy-hearted  and  anxious,  and  hardly 
up  to  making  the  appropriate  replies  to  the 
kind  greetings  of  my  relations.  I  looked  ask- 
ance at  Phillis.  She  had  certainly  grown  taller 
and  slighter,  and  was  thinner;  but  there  was  a 
flush  of  color  on  her  face  which  deceived  me 
for  a  time,  and  made  me  think  she  was  looking 
as  well  as  ever,  I  only  saw  her  paleness  after 
we  had  returned  to  the  farm,  and  she  had  sub- 
sided into  silence  and  quiet.  Iler  grey  eyes 
looked  hollow  and  sad ;  her  complexion  was  of 
a  dead  white.  But  she  went  about  just  as 
usual ;  at  least,  just  as  she  had  done  the  last 
time  I  was  there,  and  seemed  to  have  no  ail- 
ment; and  I  was  inclined  to  think  that  my 
cousin  was  right  when  she  had  answered  the 
inc[uiries  of  the  good-natured  gossips,  and  told 
them  that  Phillis  was  suffering  from  the  con- 
sequences of  a  had  cold,  nothing  more. 

I  have  said  that  I  was  to  stav^  over  the  next 
10 


146  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

day;  a  great  deal  of  snow  had  come  down,  but 
not  all,  they  said,  though  the  ground  was  cov- 
ered deep  with  the  white  fall.  The  minister 
was  anxiously  housing  his  cattle,  and  preparing 
all  things  for  a  long  continuance  of  the  same 
kind  of  weather.  The  men  were  chopping 
wood,  sending  wheat  to  the  mill  to  be  ground 
before  the  road  should  become  impassable  for  a 
cart  and  horse.  My  cousin  and  Phillis  had 
gone  upstairs  to  the  apple-room  to  cover  up  the 
fruit  from  the  frost.  I  had  been  out  the 
greater  part  of  the  morning,  and  came  in  about 
an  hour  befoie  dinner.  To  my  surprise, know- 
ing how  she  had  planned  to  be  engaged,  I 
found  Phillis  sitting  at  the  dresser,  resting  her 
head  on  her  two  hands  and  reading,  or  seeming 
to  read.  She  did  not  look  up  when  I  came  in, 
but  murmured  something  about  her  mother 
having  sent  her  down  out  of  the  cold.  It 
flashed  across  me  that  she  was  crying,  but  I 
put  it  down  to  some  little  spirt  of  temper;  I 
might  have  known  better  than  to  suspect  the 
gentle,  serene  Phillis  of  crossness,  poor  girl;  I 
stooped  down  and  began  to  stir  and  build  up 


A   STOR7'  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.        147 

the  fire,  which  appeared  to  have  been  neglected. 
While  my  head  was  down  I  heard  a  noise 
which  made  me  pause  and  listen  —  a  sob,  an 
unmistakable,  irrepressible  sob.     I  started  up. 

"Phillis!"  I  cried,  going  toward  her,  with 
my  hand  out,  to  take  hers  for  sympathy  with 
her  sorrow,  whatever  it  was.  But  she  was  too 
quick  for  me,  she  held  her  hand  out  of  my 
grasp,  for  fear  of  my  detaining  her;  as  she 
quickly  passed  out^of  the  house,  she  said, — 

"Don't,  Paul!  I  cannot  bear  it!"  and 
passed  me,  still  sobbing,  and  went  out  into  the 
keen,  open  air. 

I  stood  still  and  wondered.  What  could 
have  come  to  Phillis?  The  most  perfect  har- 
mony prevailed  in  the  familv,  and  Phillis 
especially,  good  and  gentle  as  she  was,  was  so 
l>eloved  that  if  they  had  found  out  that  her 
finger  ached,  it  would  have  cast  a  shadow  over 
their  hearts.  Had  T  done  anvthing  to  vex  her? 
Xo:  she  was  crying  before  I  came  in.  I  ^vent 
to  look  at  Iicr  book — one  of  those  unintelli- 
gible Italian  books.  I  could  make  neither 
head  nor  tail  of   it.     I   saw  some  pencil-notes 


148  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

on    the    margin,    in    Holdsworth's    handwrit- 
ing. 

Could  that  be  it?  Could  that  be  the  cause 
of  her  white  looks,  her  weary  eyes,  her  wasted 
figure,  her  struggling  sobs?  This  idea  came 
upon  me  like  a  flash  of  lightning  on  a  dark 
night,  making  all  things  so  clear  we  cannot 
forget  them  afterward  when  the  gloomy  ob- 
scurity leturns.  I  was  still  standing  with  the 
book  in  my  hand  when  I  heard  cousin  Hol- 
man's  footsteps  on  the  stairs,  and  as  I  did  not 
wish  to  speak  to  her  just  then,  I  followed  Phil- 
lis'  example,  and  rushed  out  of  the  house. 
The  snow  was  lying  on  the  ground;  I  could 
track  her  feet  by  the  marks  they  had  made;  I 
could  see  where  Rover  had  joined  her.  I  fol- 
lowed on  till  I  came  to  a  great  stack  of  wood 
in  the  orchard  —  it  was  built  up  against  the 
back  wall  of  the  outbuildings,  —  and  I  recol- 
lected then  how  Phillis  had  told  me,  that  first 
day  when  we  strolled  about  together,  that 
underneath  this  stack  had  been  her  hermitage, 
her  sanctuary,  when  she  was  a  child ;  how  she 
used  to  bring  her  book  to  study  there,  or  her 


A    STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       149 

work,  when  she  was  not  wanted  in  the  house; 
and  she  had  now  evidently  gone  back  to  this 
quiet  retreat  of  her  childhood,  forgetful  of  the 
clue  given  me  by  her  footmarks  on  the  new- 
fallen  snow.  The  stack  was  built  up  very 
high;  but  through  the  interstices  of  the  sticks 
I  could  see  her  figure,  although  I  did  not  all  at 
once  perceive  how  I  could  get  to  her.  She 
was  sitting  on  a  log  of  wood.  Rover  by  her. 
She  had  laid  her  cheek  on  Rover's  head,  and 
had  her  arm  around  his  neck,  partly  for  a  pil- 
low, partly  from  an  instinctive  craving  for 
warmth  on  that  bitter  cold  day.  She  was 
making  a  low  moan,  like  an  animal  in  pain,  or 
perhaps  more  like  the  sobbing  of  the  wind. 
Rover,  highly  flattered  by  her  caress,  and  also, 
perhaps,  touched  by  sympathy,  was  flapping 
his  heavy  tail  against  the  ground,  but  not 
otherwise  moving  a  hair,  until  he  heard  my 
approach  with  his  quick  erected  ears.  Then, 
with  a  short,  aluupt  bark  of  distrust,  he  sprang 
up  as  if  to  leave  his  mistress.  iJoth  he  and  I 
were  immo\a])ly  still  for  a  moment.  I  was 
not  sure  if   wliat  I  longed  to  do  was  wise;  and 


150  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

yet  I  could  not  bear  to  see  the  sweet  serenity 
of  my  dear  cousin's  life  so  disturbed  by  a  suf- 
fering which  I  thought  I  could  assuage.  But 
Rover's  ears  were  sharper  than  my  breathing 
was  noiseless;  he  heard  me,  and  sprang  out 
from  under  Phillis's  restraining  hand. 

"  Oh,  Rover,  don't  you  leave  me,  too,"  she 
plained  out. 

"Phillis!"  said  I,  seeing  by  Rover's  exit 
that  the  entrance  to  where  she  sat  was  to  be 
found  on  the  other  side  of  the  stack.  "  Phillis, 
come  out!  You  have  got  a  cold  already;  and 
it  is  not  fit  for  you  to  sit  there  on  such  a  day  as 
this.  You  know  how  displeased  and  anxious 
it  would  make  them  all." 

She  sighed,  but  obeyed;  stooping  a  little, 
she  came  out,  and  stood  upright,  opposite  to 
me  in  the  lonely,  leafless  orchard.  Her  face 
looked  so  meek  and  so  sad  that  I  felt  as  if  I 
ought  to  beg  her  pardon  for  my  necessarily 
authoritative  words. 

"  Sometimes  I  feel  the  house  so  close,"  she 
said;  "and  I  used  to  sit  under  the  wood-stack 


A   STORr  OF  ENGLISH   LOVE.       151 

when  I  was  a  child.  It  was  ver\'  kind  of  you, 
but  there  was  no  need  to  come  after  me.  I 
don't  catch  cold  easily." 

"Come  with  me  into  this  cow-house,  Phillis. 
I  have  got  something  to  say  to  you;  and  I  can't 
stand  this  cold,  if  you  can." 

I  think  she  would  fain  have  run  away 
again;  hut  her  fit  of  energy  was  all  spent. 
She  followed  me  imwillingly  enough  —  that  I 
could  see.  The  place  to  which  I  took  her  was 
full  of  the  fragrant  breath  of  the  cows,  and 
was  a  little  warmer  than  the  outer  air.  I  put 
her  inside,  and  stood  myself  in  the  doorway, 
thinking  how  I  could  best  begin.  At  last  I 
plunged  into  it. 

"  I  must  see  that  you  don't  get  cold  for 
more  reasons  than  one;  if  you  are  ill,  Ilolds- 
woith  will  be  so  anxious  and  miserable  out 
there"  (by  which  I  meant  Canada)  — 

.She  shot  one  penetrating  look  at  me,  and 
then  tinned  iier  face  away  with  a  slightly  im- 
patient movement.  If  she  could  have  run  away 
then  she  would,  but  I  held   the   means  of  exit 


152  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

in  my  own  power.  "  In  for  a  penny  in  for  a 
pound,"  thought  I,  and  I  went  on  rapidly,  any- 
how,— 

"  He  talked  so  much  about  you,  just  before 
he  left  —  that  night  after  he  had  been  here,  you 
know  —  and  you  had  given  him  those  flowers." 
She  put  her  hands  up  to  hide  her  face,  but 
she  was  listening  now  —  listening  with  all  her 
ears. 

"  He  had  never  spoken  much  about  you  be- 
fore, but  the  sudden  going  away  unlocked  his 
heart,  and  he  told  me  how  he  loved  you,  and 
how  he  hoped  on  his  return  that  you  might  be 
his  wife." 

"  Don't,"  said  she,  almost  gasping  out  the 
word,  which  she  had  tried  once  or  twice  before 
to  speak ;  but  her  voice  had  been  choked. 
Now  she  put  her  hand  backward;  she  had 
quite  turned  away  from  me,  and  felt  for  mine. 
She  gave  it  a  soft  lingering  pressiu'e;  and  then 
she  put  her  arms  down  on  the  wooden  division, 
and  laid  her  head  on  it,  and  cried  quiet 
tears.  I  did  not  understand  her  at  once,  and 
feared  lest  I  had  mistaken  the  whole  case,  and 


A   STOnr  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1 53 

only  annoyed  her.  I  went  up  to  her.  "  Oh, 
Phillis!  I  am  so  sorry  —  I  thought  you  would, 
perhaps,  have  cared  to  hear  it;  he  did  talk  so 
feelingly,  as  if  he  did  love  you  so  much,  and 
somehow  I  thought  it  would  give  you  pleas- 
ure." 

She  lifted  up  her  head  and  looked  at  me. 
Such  a  look !  Her  eyes,  glittering  with  tears 
as  they  were,  expressed  an  almost  heavenly 
happiness;  her  tender  mouth  was  curved  with 
rapture  —  her  color  vivid  and  blushing;  but  as 
if  she  was  afraid  her  face  expressed  too  much, 
more  than  the  thankfulness  to  me  she  was 
essaying  to  speak,  she  hid  it  again  almost  im- 
mediately. So  it  was  all  right  then,  and  my 
conjecture  was  well-founded!  I  tried  to  re- 
member something  more  to  tell  lier  of  what 
he  had  said,  but  again  she  stopped  me. 

"  Don't,"  she  said.  She  still  kept  her  face 
covered  and  hidden.  In  half  a  minute  she 
added,  in  a  very  low  voice,  "  Please,  Paul,  I 
think  I  would  rather  not  hear  any  more  —  I 
don't  mean  but  what  I  have  —  but  what  I  am 
very  much   obliged         Only  —  only,   I   think   I 


154  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

would  rather  hear  the  rest  from  himself  when 
he  comes  buck." 

And  then  she  cried  a  little  more,  in  quite  a 
different  way.  I  did  not  say  any  more,  I 
waited  for  her.  By-and-by  she  turned  toward 
me  —  not  meeting  my  eyes,  however;  and  put- 
ting her  hand  in  mine  just  as  if  we  were  two 
children,  she  said, 

"  We  had  best  go  back  now  —  I  don't  look 
as  if  I  had  been  crying,  do  I?  " 

"  You  look  as  if  you  had  a  bad  cold,"  was 
all  the  answer  I   made. 

"Oh!  but  I  am  —  I  am  quite  well,  only 
cold;  and  a  good  run  will  warm  me.  Come 
along,  Paul." 

So  we  ran,  hand  in  hand,  till,  just  as  we 
were  on  the  threshold  of  the  house  she 
stopped  — 

"  Paul,  please,  we  won't  speak  about  that 
a":ain." 


PART    IV. 


WHEN  I  went  over  on  Easter  day  I 
heard  the  chapel-gossips  compHment- 
ing  cousin  llolman  on  her  daughter's  blooming 
looks,  quite  forgetful  of  their  sinister  prophecies 
three  months  before.  And  I  looked  at  Phillis, 
and  did  not  wonder  at  their  words.  I  had  not 
seen  her  since  the  day  after  Christmas  Day.  I 
had  left  the  Hope  Farm  only  a  few  hours  after 
I  had  told  her  the  news  which  had  quickened 
her  heart  into  renewed  life  and  vigor.  The 
remembrance  of  our  conversation  in  the  cow- 
house was  vividlv  in  mv  mind  as  I  looked  at 
her  when  her  l)right,  healthy  appearance  was 
remarked  upon.  As  her  eyes  met  mine  our 
mutual  recollections  Hasiied  intelligence  from 
one  l(j  the  other.  She  turned  awa\-,  her  color 
155 


156  COUS/jV  phillis. 

heightonino-  as  she  did  so.  She  seemed  to  be 
shy  of  me  for  the  first  few  hours  after  our 
meeting,  and  I  felt  rather  vexed  with  her  for 
her  conscious  avoidance  of  me  after  my  long 
absence.  I  had  stepped  a  little  out  of  my 
usual  line  in  telling  her  what  I  did ;  not  that  I 
had  received  any  charge  of  secrecy,  or  given 
even  the  slightest  promise  to  Holdsworth  that 
I  would  not  repeat  his  words.  But  I  had  an 
uneasy  feeling  sometimes  when  I  thought  of 
what  I  had  done  in  the  excitement  of  seeing 
Phillis  so  ill  and  in  so  much  trouble.  I  meant 
to  have  told  Holdsworth  when  I  wrote  next  to 
him;  but  when  I  had  my  half-finished  letter 
before  me  I  sat  with  my  pen  in  my  hand  hesi- 
tating. I  had  more  scruple  in  revealing  what 
I  had  found  out  or  guessed  at  of  Phillis'  secret 
than  in  repeating  to  her  his  spoken  words.  I 
did  not  think  I  had  any  right  to  say  out  to  him 
what  I  believed  —  namely,  that  she  loved  him 
dearly,  and  had  felt  his  absence  even  to  the  in 
jury  of  her  health.  Yet  to  explain  what  I  had 
done  in  telling  her  how  he  had  spoken  about 
her  that  last   night,   it   would   be   necessary  to 


A   STOJRl"  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1 57 

give  my  reasons,  so  I  had  settled  within  myself 
to  leave  it  alone.  As  she  had  told  me  she 
should  like  to  hear  all  the  details  and  fuller 
particulars  and  more  explicit  declarations  first 
from  him,  so  he  should  have  the  pleasure  of 
extracting  the  delicious  tender  secret  from  her 
maidenly  lips,  I  would  not  hetray  my  guesses, 
my  surmises,  my  all  but  certain  knowledge  of 
the  state  of  her  heart.  I  had  received  two  let- 
ters from  him  after  he  had  settled  to  his  busi- 
ness; they  were  full  of  life  and  energy;  but  in 
each  there  had  been  a  message  to  the  family  at 
the  Hope  Farm  of  more  than  common  regard; 
and  a  slight  but  distinct  mention  of  Phillis  her- 
self, showing  that  she  stood  single  and  alone  in 
his  memory.  These  letters  I  had  sent  on  to 
tlie  minister,  for  he  was  sure  to  care  for  them, 
even  supposing  he  had  been  unacquainted  with 
their  writer,  because  they  were  so  clever  and 
so  pictvnx'squely  worded  that  they  brought, 
as  it  were,  a  whiff  of  foreign  atmosphere  into 
his  circumscribed  life.  I  used  to  wonder  what 
was  the  trade  or  business  in  which  the  minister 
would  not  have  thriven,  mentally  I  mean,  if   it 


158  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

had  so  happened  that  he  had  been  called  into 
that  state.  He  would  have  made  a  capital 
engineer,  that  I  know;  and  he  had  a  fancy  for 
the  sea,  like  many  other  land-locked  men  to 
whom  the  great  deep  is  a  mystery  and  a  fasci- 
nation, lie  read  law  books  with  relish;  and, 
once  happening  to  borrow  De  Lohne  on  the 
British  Constitution  (or  some  such  title),  he 
talked  about  jurisprudence  till  he  was  far  be- 
yond my  depth.  But  to  return  to  Holdsworth's 
letters.  When  the  minister  sent  them  back  he 
also  wrote  out  a  list  of  questions  suggested  by 
their  perusal,  which  I  was  to  pass  on  in  my 
answers  to  Holdsworth,  until  I  thought  of  sug 
gesting  a  direct  correspondence  between  the 
two.  That  was  the  state  of  things  as  regarded 
the  absent  one  when  I  went  to  the  farm  for  my 
Easter  visit,  and  when  I  found  Phillis  in  that 
state  of  shy  reserve  toward  me  which  I  have 
named  before.  I  thought  she  was  ungrateful; 
for  I  was  not  quite  sure  if  I  had  done  wisely  in 
having  told  her  what  I  did  I  had  committed 
a  fault,  or  a  folly  perhaps,  and  all  for  her  sake; 
and  here  was  she,  less  friends  with  me  than 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       159 

she  had  ever  been  before.  This  little  estrange- 
ment only  lasted  a  few  hours.  I  think  that  as 
soon  as  she  felt  pretty  sure  of  there  being  no 
recurrence,  either  by  word,  look  or  allusion,  to 
the  one  subject  that  was  predominant  in  her 
mind,  she  came  back  to  her  old  sisterly  ways 
with  me.  She  had  much  to  tell  me  of  her  own 
familiar  interests;  how  Rover  had  been  ill,  and 
how  anxious  they  had  all  of  them  been,  and 
how,  after  some  little  discussion  between  her 
father  and  her,  both  equally  grieved  by  the 
sufferings  of  the  old  dog,  he  had  been  "  remem- 
bered in  the  household  prayers,"  and  how  he 
hat!  begun  to  get  better  only  the  very  next  day 
and  then  she  would  have  led  me  into  a  conver- 
sation on  the  right  ends  of  praver,  and  on 
special  providences,  and  I  know  not  what;  only 
I  "jibbed"  like  their  old  cart  horse  and  refused 
to  stir  a  step  in  that  direction.  Then  we  talked 
about  tlie  different  brofxls  of  chickens,  and  she 
showed  me  the  hens  that  were  good  mothers, 
and  told  me  the  characters  of  all  the  poultry 
with  the  utm<;st  good  faith;  and  in  all  good 
faith  I  listened,  for  I  believe  theix'  was  a  great 


l6o  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

deal  of  truth  in  all  she  said.  And  then  we 
strolled  on  into  the  wood  beyond  the  ash- 
meadow,  and  both  of  us  sought  for  early  prim- 
roses and  the  fresh  green  crinkled  leaves.  She 
was  not  afraid  of  being  alone  with  me  after 
the  first  day.  I  never  saw  her  so  lovely  or  so 
happy.  I  think  she  hardly  knew  why  she  was 
so  happy  all  the  time.  I  can  see  her  now, 
standing  under  the  budding  branches  of  the 
gray  trees,  over  which  a  tinge  of  green  seemed 
to  be  deepening  day  after  day,  her  sun-bonnet 
fallen  back  on  her  neck,  her  hands  full  of  deli- 
cate wood-flowers,  quite  unconscious  of  my 
gaze,  but  intent  on  sweet  mockery  of  sortie  bird 
in  neighboring  bush  or  tree.  She  had  the  art 
of  warbling,  and  replying  to  the  notes  of  differ- 
ent birds,  and  knew  their  song,  their  habits  and 
ways,  more  accurately  than  anyone  else  I  ever 
knew.  She  had  often  done  it  at  my  request  the 
spring  before;  but  this  year  she  really  gurgled 
and  whistled  and  warbled  just  as  they  did,  out  of 
the  very  fulness  and  joy  of  her  heart.  She  was 
more  than  ever  the  very  apple  of  her  father's 
eye;  her  mother  gave  her  both  her  own  share 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       l6l 

of  love  and  that  of  the  dead  child  who  had 
died  in  infancy.  I  have  heard  cousin  Holman 
murmur,  after  a  long  dreamy  look  at  Phillis, 
and  tell  herself  how  like  she  was  growing  to 
Johnnie,  and  soothe  herself  with  plaintive  inar- 
ticulate sounds  and  many  gentle  shakes  of  the 
head,  for  the  aching  sense  of  loss  she  would 
never  get  over  in  this  world.  The  old  servants 
about  the  place  had  the  dumb  loyal  attachment 
to  the  child  of  the  land,  common  to  most  agri- 
cultural laborers;  not  often  stirred  into  activity 
or  expression.  IVIy  cousin  Phillis  was  like  a 
rose  that  had  come  to  full  bloom  on  the  sunny 
side  of  a  lonely  house,  sheltered  from  storms. 
I  have  read  in  some  book  of  poetry,  — 


A  maid  whom  there  were  none  to  praise, 
And  very  few  to  love. 


And  somehow  those  lines  always  reminded  me 
<jf  Phillis;  yet  they  were  not  true  of  her  cither. 
I  never  heard  her  praised,  and  out  of  her  own 
liousehold  there  were  very  few  to  love  her; 
but  though  no  one  spoke  out  their  approbation, 
she  always  did   right  in   her  parents'  eyes,  out 


1 63  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

of  her  natural  simple  goodness  and  wisdom. 
Holdsworth's  name  was  never  mentioned  be- 
tween us  when  we  were  alone;  but  I  had  sent 
on  his  letters  to  the  minister,  as  I  have  said; 
and  more  than  once  he  began  to  talk  about  our 
absent  friend  when  he  was  smoking  his  pipe 
after  the  day's  work  was  done.  Then  Phillis 
hung  her  head  a  little  over  her  work  and  lis- 
tened in  silence. 

"I  miss  him  more  than  I  thought  for;  no 
offence  to  you,  Paul.  I  said  once  his  company 
was  like  dram  drinking;  that  was  before  I 
knew  him ;  and  perhaps  I  spoke  in  a  spirit  of 
judgment.  To  some  men's  minds  everything 
presents  itself  strongly  and  they  speak  accord- 
ingly, and  so  did  he.  And  I  thought  in  my 
vanity  of  censorship  that  his  were  not  true  and 
sober  words;  they  would  not  have  been  if  I 
had  used  them,  but  they  were  so  to  a  man  of 
his  class  of  perceptions.  I  thought  of  the  mea- 
sure with  which  I  had  been  meting  to  him 
when  Brother  Robinson  was  here  last  Thurs- 
day and  told  me  that  a  poor  little  quotation  T 
was    making    from    the    Gcorcrics    savored    of 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       163 

vain  babbling  and  profane  heathenism.  He 
went  so  far  as  to  say  that  by  learning 
other  languages  than  our  own  we  were  flying 
in  the  face  of  the  Lord's  purpose  when  He  had 
said,  at  the  building  of  the  Tower  of  Babel, 
that  He  would  confound  their  languages  so  that 
they  should  not  understand  each  other's  speech. 
As  Brother  Robinson  was  to  me  so  was  I  to 
the  quick  wits,  bright  senses  and  ready  words 
of  Holdsworth." 

The  first  little  cloud  upon  my  peace  came 
in  the  shape  of  a  letter  from  Canada,  in  which 
there  were  two  or  three  sentences  that  troubled 
me  more  than  they  ought  to  have  done,  to 
judge  merely  from  the  words  employed.  It 
was  this:  "I  should  feel  dreary  enough  in  this 
out-of-the-way  place  if  it  were  not  for  a  friend- 
ship I  have  formed  with  a  French  Canadian  of 
the  name  of  Ventadour.  He  and  his  family 
are  a  great  resource  to  me  in  the  long  evenings. 
I  never  heard  such  delicious  vocal  music  as 
the  voices  of  these  X'entadour  Ijoys  and  girls  in 
their  part  songs;  and  the  foreign  element  re- 
tained in  their  characters  and  manner  of   living- 


164  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

reminds  me  of  some  of  the  happiest  days  of  my 
life.  Lucille,  the  second  daughter,  is  curiously 
like  Phillis  Holman."  In  vain  I  said  to  myself 
that  it  was  probably  this  likeness  that  made 
him  take  pleasure  in  the  society  of  the  Venta- 
dour  family.  In  vain  I  told  my  anxious  fancy 
that  nothing  could  be  moi"e  natural  than  this 
intimacy,  and  that  there  v\^as  no  sign  of  its  lead- 
ing to  any  consequence  that  ought  to  disturb 
me.  I  had  a  presentiment,  and  I  was  disturbed; 
and  I  could  not  reason  it  away.  I  dare  say  my 
presentiment  was  rendered  more  persistent  and 
keen  by  the  doubts  which  would  force  them- 
selves into  my  mind,  as  to  whether  I  had  done 
well  in  repeating  Iloldsworth's  words  to  Phillis. 
Her  state  of  vivid  happiness  this  summer  was 
markedly  different  to  the  peaceful  serenity  of 
former  davs.  If  in  my  thoughtfulness  at 
noticing  this  I  caught  her  eye,  she  blushed  and 
sparkled  all  over,  guessing  that  I  was  remem- 
bering our  joint  secret.  Her  eyes  fell  before 
mine,  as  if  she  could  hardly  bear  me  to  see  the 
revelation  of  their  bright  glances.  And  Axt  T 
considered  again  and  comforted  myself  by  the 


A   STORT   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       165 

reflection  that,  if  this  change  had  been  anything 
more  than  my  silly  fancy,  her  father  or  her 
mother  would  have  perceived  it.  But  they  went 
on  in  tranquil  unconsciousness  and  undisturbed 
peace. 

A    change    in    my    own    life    was    quickly 
approaching.     In    the   July    of    this    year    my 

occupation  on  the railway  and  its  branches 

came  to  an  end.  The  lines  were  completed 
and  I  was  to  leave shire,  to  return  to  Bir- 
mingham, where  there  was  a  niche  already 
provided  for  me  in  my  father's  prosperous 
business.  But  before  I  left  the  north  it  was 
an  understood  thing  among  us  all  that  I 
was  to  go  and  pay  a  visit  of  some  weeks  at  the 
Hope  Farm.  My  father  was  as  much  pleased 
at  this  plan  as  I  was;  and  the  dear  family  of 
cousins  often  spoke  of  things  to  be  done  and 
sights  to  be  shown  me  during  this  visit.  My 
want  of  wisdom  in  having  told  "  that  thing" 
(under  such  ambiguous  words  T  concealed  the 
injudicious  confidence  I  liad  made  to  Phillis) 
was  the  only  drawback  to  my  anticipations  of 
pleasure. 


1 66  COUS/N  PHILLIS. 

The  ways  of  life  were  too  simple  at  the 
Hope  Farm  for  my  coming  to  them  to  make 
the  slightest  disturbance.  I  knew  my  room, 
like  a  son  of  the  house.  I  knew  the  regular 
course  of  their  clays,  and  that  I  was  expected 
to  fall  into  it  like  one  of  the  family.  Deep 
summer  peace  brooded  over  the  place;  the 
warm  golden  air  was  filled  with  the  murmur 
of  insects  near  at  hand,  the  more  distant  sound 
of  voices  out  in  the  fields,  the  clear  far-away 
rumble  of  carts  over  the  stone-paved  lanes 
miles  away.  The  heat  was  too  great  for  the 
birds  to  be  singing;  only  now  and  then  one 
might  hear  the  wood  pigeons  in  the  trees 
beyond  the  ash-field.  The  cattle  stood  knee 
deep  in  the  pond,  flicking  their  tails  about  to 
keep  off  the  flies.  The  minister  stood  in  the 
hay-field,  without  hat  or  cravat,  coat  or  waist- 
coat, panting  and  smiling.  Phillis  had  been 
leading  the  row  of  farm  servants,  turning  the 
swathes  of  fragrant  hay  with  measured  move- 
ment. She  went  to  the  end  —  to  the  hedge, 
and  then,  throwing  down  her  rake,  she  came 
to  me  with  her  free,  sisterly  welcome.     "  Go, 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         167 

Paul!  "  said  the  minister.  "  We  need  all  hands 
to  make  use  of  the  sunshine  to-day.  '  Whatso- 
ever thine  hand  findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  all  thy 
might.'  It  will  be  a  healthy  change  of  work 
for  thee,  lad;  and  I  find  my  best  rest  in 
change  of  work."  So  off  I  went,  a  willing 
laborer,  following  Phillis'  lead;  it  was  the 
primitive  distinction  of  rank;  the  boy  who 
frightened  the  sparrows  off  the  fruit  was  the 
last  in  our  rear.  We  did  not  leave  off  till  the 
red  sun  was  gone  down  behind  the  fir  trees 
bordering  the  common.  Then  we  went  home 
to  supper  —  prayers  —  to  bed  ;  some  bird  sing- 
ing far  into  the  niglit,  as  I  heard  it  through  my 
open  window,  and  the  poultry  beginning  their 
clatter  and  cackle  in  the  earliest  morning.  I 
had  carried  w  hat  luggage  I  immediately  needed 
with  me  from  my  lodgings  and  the  rest  was  to 
be  sent  bv  the  carrier.  lie  brought  it  to  the 
farm  betimes  that  morning,  and  along  with  it 
he  brought  a  letter  or  two  that  had  arrived 
since  I  had  left.  I  was  talking  to  cousin  IIol- 
man  —  about  my  mother's  ways  of  making 
bread,  I  iciiicnd)er ;  cousin   Ilolman  was  ques- 


1 68  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 


tioning  me  and  had  got  me  far  beyond  my 
depth  —  in  the  house-place,  when  the  letters 
were  brought  in  by  one  of  the  men  and 
I  had  to  pay  the  carrier  for  his  trouble  be- 
fore I  could  look  at  them.  A  bill  —  a  Cana- 
dian letter!  What  instinct  made  me  so  thank- 
ful that  I  was  alone  with  my  dear  unobservant 
cousin?  What  made  me  hurry  them  away 
into  my  coat  pocket?  I  do  not  know.  I  felt 
strange  and  sick  and  made  irrelevant  answers, 
I  am  afraid.  Then  I  went  to  my  room,  osten- 
sibly to  carry  up  my  boxes.  I  sat  on  the  side 
of  my  bed  and  opened  my  letter  from  Holds- 
worth.  It  seemed  to  me  as  if  I  had  read  its 
contents  before  and  knew  exactly  what  he  had 
got  to  say.  I  knew  he  w'as  going  to  be 
married  to  Lucille  Ventadour;  nay,  that  he 
ivas  married ;  for  this  was  the  5th  of  July  and 
he  wrote  word  that  his  marriage  was  fixed  to 
take  place  on  the  29th  of  June.  I  knew  all  the 
reasons  he  gave,  all  the  raptures  he  went  into, 
I  held  the  letter  loosely  in  my  hands  and  looked 
into  vacancy,  yet  I  saw  a  chaffinch's  nest  on 
the  lichen-covered  trunk  of  an  old  apple  tree 


STORT  OF  ENGLISH  I.OVE.       169 

opposite  my  window,  and  saw  the  mother-bird 
come  fluttering  in  to  feed  her  brood  —  and  yet 
I  did  not  see  it,  although  it  seemed  to  me  after- 
ward as  if  I  could  have  drawn  every  fibre, 
every  feather.  I  was  stirred  up  to  action  by 
the  merry  sound  of  voices  and  the  clamp  of 
rustic  feet  coming  home  for  the  mid-day  meal. 
I  knew  I  must  go  down  to  dinner;  I  knew, 
too,  I  must  tell  Phillis;  for  in  his  happy  ego- 
tism, his  new-fangled  foppery,  Holdsworth  had 
put  in  a  P.  S.,  saying  that  he  should  send  wed- 
ding cards  to  me  and  some  other  Hornby  and 
Eltham  acquaintances,  and  "to  his  kind  friends 
at  Hope  Farm."  Phillis  had  faded  away  to 
one  among  several  "  kind  friends."  I  don't 
know  how  I  got  through  dinner  that  day.  I 
remember  forcing  myself  to  eat  and  talking  hard; 
but  I  also  recollect  the  wondering  look  in  the 
minister's  eyes.  He  was  not  one  to  think  evil 
without  cause;  but  many  a  one  would  have 
taken  me  for  drunk.  As  soon  as  I  decently 
could  I  left  the  table,  saying  I  would  go  out  for 
a  walk.  At  first  I  must  have  tried  to  stun  re- 
flection by  ra])id  walking,  for  I  had  lost  myself 


170  COUSIN  PIIILLIS. 

on  the  high  moorlands  far  beyond  the  familiar 
gorse-covered  common,  before  I  was  obliged 
for  very  weariness  to  slacken  my  pace.  I  kept 
wishing  —  oh!  how  fervently  wishing  I  had 
never  committed  that  blunder;  that  the  one 
little  half-hour's  indiscretion  could  be  blotted 
out.  Alternating  with  this  was  anger  against 
Holdsworth;  unjust  enough,  I  dare  say.  I 
suppose  I  stayed  in  that  solitary  place  for  a 
good  hour  or  more,  and  then  I  turned  home- 
ward, resolved  to  get  over  the  telling  Phillis  at 
the  first  opportunity,  but  shrinking  from  the 
fulfilment  of  my  resolution  so  much  that  when 
I  came  into  the  house  and  saw  Phillis  (doors 
and  windows  open  wide  in  the  sultry  weather) 
alone  in  the  kitchen,  I  became  quite  sick  with 
apprehension.  She  was  standing  by  the  dresser, 
cutting  up  a  great  household  loaf  into  hunches 
of  bread  for  the  hungry  laborers  who  might 
come  in  any  minute,  for  the  heavy  thunder- 
clouds were  overspreading  the  sky.  She 
looked  around  as  she  heard   my  step. 

"  You  should  have  been  in  the  field,  helping 
with  the   hay,"   said  she,  in   her  calm,  pleasant 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       17 1 

voice.  I  had  heard  her  as  I  came  near  the 
house  softly  chanting  some  hymn-tune,  and 
the  peacefuhiess  of  that  seemed  to  be  brooding 
over  her  now. 

"  Perliaps  I  should.  It  looks  as  if  it  was 
going  to  rain." 

"  Yes;  there  is  thunder  about.  Mother  has 
had  to  go  to  bed  with  one  of  her  bad  head- 
aches.    Now  you  are  come  in  —  " 

"  Phillis,"  said  I,  rushing  at  my  subject  and 
interrupting  her,  "  I  went  a  long  walk  to  think 
over  a  letter  I  had  this  morning  —  a  letter  from 
Canada.  You  don't  know  how  it  has  grieved 
me."  I  lield  it  out  to  her  as  I  spoke.  Her 
color  changed  a  little,  but  it  was  more  the  re- 
flection of  m\'  face,  I  think,  than  because  she 
formed  any  definite  idea  from  my  words.  Still 
she  did  not  take  tlie  letter.  I  had  to  bid  her 
read  it,  before  she  finite  understood  what  I 
wished.  She  sat  down  rather  suddenly  as  she 
received  it  intf>  her  hands;  and,  spreading  it  on 
the  dresser  before  her,  she  rested  ber  forehead 
on  the  palms  of  her  hands,  her  arms  sup]:)()rted 
on  the  table,  her  figure  a  little  averted,  and  her 


172  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

countenance  thus  shaded.  I  looked  out  of  the 
open  window;  my  heart  was  very  heavy. 
How  peaceful  it  all  seemed  in  the  farmyard! 
Peace  and  plenty.  How  still  and  deep  was  the 
silence  of  the  house!  Tick-tick  went  the  un- 
seen clock  on  the  wide  staircase.  I  had  heard 
the  rustle  once,  when  she  turned  over  the  page 
of  thin  paper.  She  must  have  read  to  the 
end.  Yet  she  did  not  move,  or  say  a  word,  or 
even  sigh.  I  kept  on  looking  out  of  the  win- 
dow, my  hands  in  my  pockets.  I  wonder  hovv 
long  that  time  really  was?  It  seemed  to  me 
interminable  —  unbearable.  At  length  I  looked 
around  at  her.  She  must  have  felt  my  look, 
for  she  changed  her  attitude  with  a  quick  sharp 
movement,  and  caught  my  eyes. 

"  Don't  look  so  sorry,  Paul,"  she  said. 
"  Don't,  please.  I  can't  bear  it.  There  is 
nothing  to  be  sorry  for.  I  think  not,  at  least. 
You  have  not  done  wrong,  at  any  rate."  I 
felt  that  I  groaned,  but  I  don't  think  she  heard 
me.  "And  he, —  there's  no  wrong  in  his  mar- 
rying, is  there?  I'm  sure  I  hope  he'll  be 
happy.     Oh!     how    I    hope    it!"     These    last 


A    STORr   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       173 

words  were  like  a  wail;  but  I  believe  she  was 
afraid  of  breaking  down,  for  she  changed  the 
key  in  which  she  spoke,  and  hurried  on,  "  Lu- 
cille—  that's  our  English  Lucy,  I  suppose? 
Lucille   Holdsworth!     It's  a  pretty  name;  and 

I  hope I  forget  what  I  was  going  to  say. 

Oh!  it  was  this.  Paul,  I  think  we  need  never 
speak  about  this  again;  only  remember  you  are 
not  to  be  sorry.  You  have  not  done  wrong; 
^•ou  have  been  very, ''tJrjMsind;  and  if  I  see 
you  looking  grieved  I  don't  know  what  I 
might  do, —  I  might  break  down,  you  know." 
I  think  she  was  on  the  point  of  doing  so 
then,  but  the  dark  storm  came  dashing  down, 
and  the  thunder-cloud  broke  right  above  the 
house,  as  it  seemed.  Her  mother,  roused  from 
sleep,  called  out  for  Phillis;  the  men  and 
women  from  the  hayfield  came  running  into 
shelter,  drenched  through.  The  minister  fol- 
lowed, smiling,  and  not  unpleasantly  excited 
by  the  war  of  elements;  for,  bv  dint  of  hard 
work  through  the  long  simimer's  dav,  the 
greater  part  of  the  hav  was  safely  housed  in 
the   barn    in   the  lield.     Once    or   twice   in    the 


174  COUSIN  PH/LL/S. 

succeeding  bustle  I  came  across  Phillis,  al- 
ways busy,  and,  as  it  seemed  to  me,  always 
doing  the  right  thing.  When  1  was  alone 
in  my  own  room  at  night  I  allowed  my- 
self to  feel  relieved;  and  to  believe  that 
the  worst  was  over,  and  was  not  so  very 
bad  after  all.  But  the  succeeding  days  were 
very  miserable.  Sometimes  I  thought  it  must 
be  my  fancy  that  falsely  represented  Phillis  to 
me  as  strangely  changed,  for  surely,  if  this  idea 
of  mine  was  well-founded,  her  parents  —  her 
father  and  mother  —  her  own  flesh  and  blood  — 
would  have  been  the  first  to  perceive  it.  Yet 
they  went  on  in  their  household  peace  and  con- 
tent; if  anything,  a  little  more  cheerfull}^  than 
usual,  for  the  "  harvest  of  the  first-fruits,"  as 
the  minister  called  it,  had  been  more  bounteous 
than  usual,  and  there  was  plenty  all  around  in 
which  the  humblest  laborer  was  made  to  share. 
After  the  one  thunderstorm,  came  one  or  two 
lovely  serene  summer  days,  during  which  the 
hay  v\"as  all  carried;  and  then  succeeded  long 
soft  rains  filling  the  ears  of  corn,  and  causing 
the  mown  grass  to  spring  afresh.     The  minis- 


A   STORl^  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1 75 

ter  allowed  himself  a  few  more  hours  of  re- 
laxation and  home  enjoyment  than  usual 
during  this  wet  spell:  hard  earth-bound  frost 
was  his  winter  holiday;  these  wet  days,  after 
the  hav  harvest,  his  summer  holiday.  We  sat 
with  open  windows,  the  fragrance  and  the 
freshness  called  out  by  the  soft-falling  rain 
filling  the  house-place;  while  the  quiet  cease- 
less patter  among  the  leaves  outside  ought  to 
have  had  the  same  lulling  effect  as  all  other 
gentle  perpetual  sounds,  such  as  mill-wheels 
and  bubbling  springs,  have  on  the  nerves  of 
happv  people.  But  two  of  us  were  not  happy. 
I  was  sure  enough  of  myself,  for  one.  I  was 
worse  than  sure,  —  I  was  wretchedly  anxious 
about  Phillis.  Ever  since  that  day  of  the 
thunderstorm  there  had  been  a  new,  sharp,  dis- 
cordant sound  to  mc  in  her  voice,  a  sort  of 
jangle  in  her  lone;  and  hv.r  restless  eyes  had  no 
cjuietness  in  them;  and  her  color  came  and 
went  without  a  cause  that  I  could  find  out. 
Tlie  minister,  happv  in  ignorance  of  what 
most  concerned  him,  brought  f)Ut  his  books, — 
his  learned  volumes  and  classics.      Whether  he 


176  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

read  and  talked  to  Phillis,  or  to  me,  I  do  not 
know;  but  feeling  by  instinct  that  she  was  not, 
could  not  be,  attending  to  the  peaceful  details, 
so  strange  and  foreign  to  the  turmoil  in  her 
heart,  1  forced  myself  to  listen,  and  if  possible 
to  understand. 

"Look  here!"  said  the  minister,  tapping 
the  old  vellum-bound  book  he  held;  "in  the 
first  Geo7-gic  he  speaks  of  rolling  and  irriga- 
tion; a  little  further  on  he  insists  on  choice  of 
the  best  seed,  and  advises  us  to  keep  the  drains 
clear.  Again,  no  Scotch  farmer  could  give 
shrewder  advice  than  to  cut  light  meadows 
while  the  dew  is  on,  even  though  it  involve 
nightwork.  It  is  all  living  truth  in  these  days." 
He  began  beating  time  with  a  ruler  upon  his 
knee,  to  some  Latin  lines  he  read  aloud  just 
then.  I  suppose  the  monotonous  chant  irri- 
tated Phillis  to  some  irregular  energy,  for  I 
remember  the  quick  knotting  and  breaking  of 
the  thread  with  which  she  was  sewing.  I 
never  hear  that  snap  repeated  now,  without 
suspecting  some  sting  or  stab  troubling  the 
heart  of  the  worker.     Cousin  Holman,  at  her 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       177 

peaceful  knitting,  noticed  the  reason  why  Phil- 
lis  had  so  constantly  to  interrupt  the  progress 
of  her  seam. 

"  It  is  bad  thread,  I'm  afraid,"  she  said,  in 
a  gentle  sympathetic  voice.  But  it  was  too 
much  for  Phillis. 

"  The  thread  is  bad  —  everything  is  bad  — 
I  am  so  tired  of  it  all!"  And  she  put  down 
her  work,  and  hastily  left  the  room.  I  do  not 
suppose  that  in  all  her  life  Phillis  had  ever 
shown  so  much  temper  before.  In  many  a 
family  the  tone,  the  manner,  would  not  have 
been  noticed ;  but  here  it  fell  with  a  sharp  sur- 
prise upon  the  sweet,  calm  atmosphere  of  home. 
The  minister  put  down  ruler  and  book,  and 
pushed  his  spectacles  up  to  his  forehead.  The 
mother  looked  distressed  for  a  moment,  and 
then  smoothetl  her  features  and  said  in  an  ex- 
planatory tone,  —  "It's  the  weatlicr,  I  think. 
Some  people  feel  it  different  to  others.  It 
always  brings  on  a  lieadache  with  me."  She 
got  up  to  follow  her  daughter,  but  half-way  to 
the  door  she  thought  better  of  it,  and  came 
back  to  her  seat.  Good  mother!  she  hoped 
I? 


178  COUSIN   PHTLLIS. 

the  better  to  conceal  the  unusual  spirit  of  tem- 
per, by  pretendino^  not  to  take  much  notice  of 
it.  "  Go  on,  minister,"  she  said ;  "  it  is  very 
interesting  what  you  are  reading  about,  and 
when  I  don't  quite  understand  it,  I  like  the 
sound  of  your  voice."  So  he  went  on,  but 
languidly  and  irregularly,  and  beat  no  more 
time  with  his  ruler  to  any  Latin  lines.  When 
the  dusk  came  on,  early  that  July  night  be- 
cause of  the  cloudy  sky,  Phillis  came  softly 
back,  making  as  though  nothing  had  happened. 
She  took  up  her  work,  but  it  was  too  dark  to 
do  many  stitches;  and  she  dropped  it  soon. 
Then  I  saw  how  her  hand  stole  into  her 
mother's,  and  how  this  latter  fondled  it  with 
quiet  little  caresses,  while  the  minister,  as  fully 
aware  as  I  was  to  this  tender  j^antomime,  went 
on  talking  in  a  happier  tone  of  voice  about 
things  as  uninterestmg  to  him,  at  the  time,  I 
verily  believe,  as  they  were  to  me;  and  that  is 
saying  a  good  deal,  and  shows  how  much  more 
real  what  was  passing  before  him  was,  even  to 
a  farmer,  than  the  agricultural  customs  of  the 
ancients. 


A   STOR7'   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       179 

I  remember  one  thing  more, —  an  attack 
which  Betty  the  servant  made  upon  me  one 
day  as  I  came  in  through  the  kitchen  where 
she  was  churning,  and  stopped  to  ask  her  for  a 
(hink  of  butteimilk. 

"I  say,  cousin  Paul"  (she  had  adopted  the 
family  habit  of  addressing  me  generally  as 
cousin  Paul,  and  always  speaking  of  me  in 
that  form),  "something's  amiss  with  our  Phil- 
lis,  and  I  reckon  you've  a  good  guess  what  it 
is.  .She's  not  one  to  take  up  wi'  such  as  you" 
(not  complimentary,  but  that  Betty  never  was, 
even  to  those  for  whom  she  felt  the  highest  re- 
spect), "but  V(\  as  lief  yon  Iloldsworth  had 
never  come  near  us.  So  there  you've  a  bit  o' 
my  mind." 

And  a  very  unsatisfactory  bit  it  was.  I  did 
not  know  what  to  answer  to  the  glimpse  at  the 
real  state  of  the  case  implied  in  the  shrewd 
woman's  speech;  so  T  tried  to  put  her  off  bv 
assuming  sui^prisc  at  hci"  fu'st  assertion. 

"Amiss  with  Pliillis!  I  should  like  to 
know  whv  \ou  fliink  amthing  is  wi-r)ng  with 
her.      She  lo<jks  as  blooming  as  any  one  can  do," 


l8o  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

"Poor  lad!  you're  but  a  big  child  after  all; 
and  you've  likely  never  beared  of  a  fever-flush. 
But  you  know  better  nor  that,  my  fine  fellow! 
so  don't  think  for  to  put  me  off  wi'  blooms  and 
blossoms  and  such-like  talk.  What  makes  her 
walk  about  for  hours  and  hours  o'  nights  when 
she  used  to  be  abed  and  asleep?  I  sleep  next 
room  to  her,  and  hear  her  plain  as  can  be. 
What  makes  her  come  in  panting  and  ready  to 
drop  into  that  chair"  —  nodding  to  one  close 
to  the  door  —  "and  it's  'Oh!  Betty,  some 
water,  please?'  That's  the  way  she  comes  in 
now,  when  she  used  to  come  back  as  fresh  and 
bright  as  she  went  out.  If  yon  friend  o'  yours 
has  played  her  false,  he's  a  deal  for  t'  answer 
for;  she's  a  lass  who's  as  sweet  and  as  sound  as 
a  nut,  and  the  very  apple  of  her  father's  eye, 
and  of  her  mother's  too,  only  wi'  her  she  ranks 
second  to  th'  minister.  You'll  have  to  look 
after  yon  chap,  for  I,  for  one,  will  stand  no 
wrong  to  our  Phillis." 

What  was  I  to  do,  or  to  say?  I  wanted  to 
justify    Holdsworth,  to    keep     Philljs'    secret, 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.        i8l 

and  to  pacify  the  woman,  all  in  the  same  breath. 
I  did  not  take  the  best  course,  I'm  afraid. 

"  I  don't  believe  Holdsworth  ever  spoke  a 
word  of  —  of  love  to  her  in  all  his  life.  I'm 
sure  he  didn't." 

"  Ay,  ay  !  but  there's  eyes,  and  there's  hands, 
as  well  as  tongues;  and  a  man  has  two  o'  th' 
one  and  but  one  o'  t'other." 

"And  she's  so  young;  do  you  suppose  her 
parents  would  not  have  seen  it?" 

"Well!  if  vou  ax  me  that,  I'll  say  out 
boldly,  '  No.'  They've  called  her  '  the  child  ' 
so  long  —  '  the  child  '  is  alwavs  their  name  for 
her  when  tlic\-  talk  on  her  between  themselves, 
as  if  never  anvljody  else  had  a  ewe  lamb  be- 
fore them  —  that  she's  grown  up  to  be  a 
woman  under  their  very  eyes,  and  they  look 
on  her  still  as  if  she  were  in  her  long  clothes. 
And  you  ne'er  heard  on  a  man  falling  in  love 
wi'  a  bal)bv  in  long-clothes  I" 

"No?"  said  I,  half  laughing.  But  she 
went  on  as  gra\e  as  a  judge. 

"  Ay  I    you    see    you'll    laugh    at    the    bare 


1 82  COUSIN  PIIILLIS. 

thought  on  it  —  and  I'll  be  bound  th'  minister, 
though  he's  not  a  laughing  man,  would  ha' 
sniggled  at  th'  notion  of  falling  in  love  wi'  the 
child.     Where's  Holdsworth  off  to?" 

"  Canada,"  said  I,  shortly. 

"  Canada  here,  Canada  there,"  she  replied, 
testily.  "  Tell  me  how  far  he's  off,  instead  of 
giving  me  your  gibberish.  Is  he  a  two  days' 
journey  away  ?   or  a  three  ?  or  a  week  ? " 

"He's  ever  so  far  off  —  three  weeks  at  the 
least,"  cried  I  in  despair.  "And  he's  either 
married  or  just  going  to  be.  So  there!"  I  ex- 
pected a  fresh  burst  of  anger.  But  no;  the 
matter  was  too  serious.  Betty  sat  down  and 
kept  silence  for  a  minute  or  two.  She  looked 
so  miserable  and  downcast  that  I  could  not  help 
going  on  and  taking  her  a  little  into  my  confi- 
dence. 

"  It  is  quite  true  what  I  said.  I  know  he 
never  spoke  a  word  to  her.  I  think  he  liked 
her,  but  it's  all  over  now.  The  best  thing  we 
can  do  —  the  best  and  kindest  for  her — and  I 
know  you  love  her,  Betty " 

"I  nursed  her  in  my  arms;   I  gave  her  little 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1S3 

brother  his  last  taste  o'  earthly  food,"  said 
Betty,  putting  her  apron  up  to  her  eyes. 

"Well!  don't  let  us  show  her  we  guess 
that  she  is  grieving;  she'll  get  over  it  the 
sooner.  Her  father  and  mother  don't  even 
guess  at  it,  and  we  must  make  as  if  we  didn't. 
It's  too  late  now  to  do  anything  else." 

"  I'll  never  let  on;  I  know  nought.  I've 
known  true  love  mysel'  in  my  day.  But  I 
wish  he'd  been  farred  before  he  ever  came  near 
this  house,  with  his  '  Please  Betty '  this  and 
'  Please  Betty  '  that,  and  drinking  up  our  new 
milk  as  if  he'd  been  a  cat;  I  hate  such  beguil- 
ing wavs." 

I  tliought  it  was  as  well  to  let  her  exhaust 
herself  in  abusing  the  absent  Ploldsworth;  if  it 
was  shabby  and  treacherous  in  me  I  came  in 
for  my  punishment  directly. 

"  It's  a  caution  to  a  man  how  he  goes  about 
beguiling.  Some  men  do  it  as  easv  and  inno- 
cent as  cooing  doves.  Don't  you  be  none  of 
'em,  mv  lad.  Not  that  you've  got  the  gifts  to 
do  it,  either;  vou're  no  great  shakes  to  look  at, 
neither  for  figure  nor  yet  for  face,  and  it  would 


184  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

need  be  a  deaf  adder  to  be  taken  in  wi'  your 
words,  though  there  may  be  no  great  harm  in 
'em."  A  lad  of  nineteen  or  twenty  is  not  flat- 
tered by  such  an  out-spoken  opinion  even  from 
the  oklest  and  ugHest  of  her  sex;  and  I  was 
only  too  glad  to  change  the  subject  by  my  re- 
peated injunctions  to  keep  Phillis'  secret.  The 
end  of  our  conversation  was  this  speech  of 
hers:  — 

"  You  great  gaupus,  for  all  you're  called 
cousin  o' th'  minister  —  many  a  one  is  cursed 
wi' fools  for  cousins  —  d'ye  think  I  can't  see 
sense  except  through  your  spectacles?  I  give 
you  leave  to  cut  out  my  tongue  and  nail  it  up 
on  th'  barn  door  for  a  caution  to  magpies,  if  I 
let  out  on  that  jDoor  wench,  either  to  herself  or 
any  one  that  is  hers,  as  the  Bible  says.  Now 
you've  heard  me  speak  Scripture  language  per- 
haps you'll  be  content  and  leave  me  my  kitchen 
to  myself." 

During  all  these  days,  from  the  5th  of  July 
to  the  17th,  I  must  have  forgotten  what  Holds- 
worth  had  said  about  sending  cards.  And  yet 
I  think  I  could  not  have  quite  forgotten;  but, 


A   STORl-  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1S5 

once  having  told  Phillis  about  his  marriage,  I 
must  have  looked  upon  the  after  consequences 
of  cards  as  of  no  importance.  At  any  rate 
they  came  upon  me  as  a  surprise  at  last.  The 
penny-post  reform,  as  people  call  it,  had  come 
into  operation  a  short  time  before;  but  the 
never-ending  stream  of  notes  and  letters  which 
seem  now  to  flow  in  upon  most  households  had 
not  yet  begun  its  course;  at  least  in  those  remote 
parts.  There  was  a  post-ofFice  at  Hornby;  and 
an  old  fellow,  who  stowed  away  the  few  letters 
in  any  or  all  his  pockets,  as  it  best  suited  him, 
was  the  letter  carrier  to  Ileathbridge  and  the 
neighborhood.  I  have  often  met  him  in  the 
lanes  thereabouts  and  asked  him  for  letters. 
Sometimes  I  have  come  upon  him,  sitting  on 
the  hedge  bank  resting;  and  he  has  begged  me 
to  read  him  an  address,  too  illegible  for  his 
spectacled  eyes  to  decipher.  When  I  used  to 
inquire  if  he  had  anvthing  for  me, or  for  Holds- 
worth  (  he  was  not  particular  to  whom  he  gave  up 
the  letters,  so  that  he  got  rid  of  them  somehow, 
and  could  set  off  homeward)  he  would  say  he 
thought    he    had,  f<;r    such    was   his   invariable 


1 86  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

safe  form  of  answer;  and  would  fumble  in 
breast  -  pockets,  waistcoat  -  pockets,  breeches  - 
pockets,  and,  as  a  last  resource,  in  coat-tail- 
pockets;  and  at  length  try  to  comfort  me,  if  I 
looked  disappointed,  by  telling  me  "  Hoo  had 
missed  this  toime,  but  was  sure  to  write  to- 
morrow;" "Hoo"  representing  an  imaginary 
sweetheart. 

Sometimes  I  had  seen  the  minister  bring 
home  a  letter  which  he  had  found  lying  for 
him  at  the  little  shop  that  was  the  post-office  at 
Heathbridge,  or  from  the  grander  establish- 
ment at  Hornby.  Once  or  twice,  Josiah,  the 
carter,  remembered  that  the  old  letter-carrier 
had  trusted  him  with  an  epistle  to  "  Measter," 
as  they  had  met  in  the  lanes.  I  think  it  must 
have  been  about  ten  days  after  my  arrival  at 
the  farm,  and  my  talk  to  Phillis  cutting  bread- 
and-butter  at  the  kitchen  dresser,  before  the 
day  on  which  the  minister  suddenly  spoke  at 
the  dinner-table,  and  said, — 

"  By-the-by,  I've  got  a  letter  in  my  pocket. 
Reach  mc  my  coat  here,  Phillis."  The  weather 
was   still   sultry,  and  for  coolness  and  ease  the 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1S7 

minister  was  sitting  in  his  shirt-sleeves.  "  I  went 
to  Heathbridge  about  the  paper  they  had  sent 
me,  which  spoils  all  the  pens  —  and  I  called  at  the 
post-oftice,  and  found  a  letter  for  me,  unpaid  — 
and  they  did  not  like  to  trust  it  to  old  Zekiel! 
Ay!  here  it  is!  Now  we  shall  hear  news  of 
Holdsworth — I  thought  I'd  keep  it  till  we 
were  all  together."  My  heart  seemed  to  stop 
beating  and  I  hung  my  head  over  my  plate, 
not  daring  to  look  up.  What  would  come  of 
it  now?  What  was  Phillis  doing?  How  was 
she  looking?  A  moment  of  suspense  —  and 
then  he  spoke  again.  "Why!  what's  this? 
Here  are  two  visiting  tickets  with  his  name  on, 
no  writing  at  all.  No!  it's  not  his  name  on 
both.  Mus.  Holdsworth!  The  young  man 
has  gone  and  got  married."  I  lifted  my  head 
at  these  words;  I  could  not  help  looking  just 
for  one  instant  at  Phillis.  It  seemed  to  me  as 
if  she  had  been  keeping  watch  over  my  face 
and  wa\s.  Her  face  was  brilliantly  flushed; 
her  eyes  were  dry  and  glittering;  but  slie  did 
not  speak;  lier  lips  were  set  together  almost  as 
if    she    was    pinching    them    tight    to    prevent 


l88  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

words  or  sounds  coming  out.  Cousin  Holman's 
face  expressed  surprise  and  interest. 

"Well!"  said  she,  "who'd  ha' thought  it! 
He's  made  quick  work  of  his  wooing  and  wed- 
ding. I'm  sure  I  wish  him  happy.  Let  me 
see  "  ^  counting  on  her  fingers,  —  "October, 
November,  December,  January,  February, 
March,  April,  May,  June,  July  —  at  least 
we're  at  the  28th,  —  it  is  nearly  ten  months 
after  all,  and  reckon  a  month  each  way 
off " 

"  Did  you  know  of  this  news  before?"  said 
the  minister,  turning  sharp  around  on  me,  sur- 
prised, I  suppose,  at  my  silence, —  hardly  sus- 
picious, as  yet. 

"  I  knew  —  I  had  heard  —  something.  It 
is  to  a  French  Canadian  young  lady,"  I  went 
on,  forcing  myself  to  talk.  "  Her  name  is 
Ventadour." 

"Lucille  Ventadour!"  said  Phillis,  in  a 
sharp  voice,  out  of  tunc. 

"  Then  you  knew  too!  "  exclaimed  the  min- 
ister. 

We  both  spoke  at  once.     I  said,   "  I    heard 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       1S9 

of    the    probability    of and    told    Phillis." 

She  said,  "  He  is  married  to  Lucille  Ventadour, 
of  French  descent;  one  of  a  large  family  near 
St.  IMeurice,  am  not  I  right?"  I  nodded. 
"  Paul  told  me,  —  that  is  all  we  know,  is  not  it? 
Did  you  see  the  Howsous,  father,  in  Heath- 
bridge?"  and  she  forced  herself  to  talk  more 
than  she  had  done  for  several  days,  asking 
many  questions,  trying,  as  I  could  see,  to  keep 
the  conversation  off  the  one  raw  surface,  on 
which  to  touch  was  agony.  I  had  less  self- 
command;  but  I  followed  her  lead.  I  was  not 
so  much  absorbed  in  the  conversation  but  what 
I  could  see  that  the  minister  was  puzzled  and 
uneasy;  though  he  seconded  Pliillis' efforts  to 
prevent  her  mother  from  recurring  to  the  great 
piece  of  news,  and  uttering  continual  exclama- 
tions of  wonder  and  surprise.  I>ut  with  that 
one  exception  we  were  all  disturlied  out  of  our 
natural  equanimity,  more  or  less.  Every  dav, 
e\ery  hour,  I  was  reproaching  myself  more 
and  moi'c  for  \w\  bluiidciing  ofliciousness.  If 
only  I  had  lield  mv  foolish  tongue  for  tliat  one 
half-hoiu";  if  (July  I  had   not   been  in  such  ini- 


190  COUS/N  PHILLIS. 

patient  haste  to  do  something  to  relieve  pain ! 
I  could  have  knocked  my  stupid  head  against 
the  wall  in  my  remorse.  Yet  all  I  could  do 
now  was  to  second  the  brave  girl  in  her  efforts 
to  conceal  her  disappointment  and  keep  her 
maidenly  secret.  But  I  thought  that  dinner 
would  never,  never  come  to  an  end.  I  suffered 
for  her,  even  more  than  for  myself.  Until 
now  everything  whicli  I  had  heard  spoken  in 
that  happy  household  were  simple  words  of 
true  meaning.  If  we  had  aught  to  say,  we 
said  it;  and  if  any  one  preferred  silence,  nay  if 
all  did  so,  there  would  have  been  no  spasmodic, 
forced  efforts  to  talk  for  the  sake  of  talking, 
or  to  keep  off  intrusive  thoughts  or  suspi- 
cions. 

At  length  we  got  up  from  our  places,  and 
jDrcpared  to  disperse;  but  two  or  three  of  us 
had  lost  our  zest  and  interest  in  the  daily  labor. 
The  minister  stood  looking  out  of  the  window 
in  silence,  and  when  he  roused  himself  to  go 
out  to  the  field  where  his  laborers  were  work- 
ing, it  was  with  a  sigh ;  and  he  tried  to  avert 
his  troubled  face  as  he  passed  us  on  his  way  to 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       191 

the  door.  When  he  had  left  us,  I  caught 
sight  of  Phillis'  face,  as,  thinking  herself  un- 
observed, her  countenance  relaxed  for  a  mo- 
ment or  two  into  sad,  woful  weariness.  She 
started  into  briskness  again  when  her  mother 
spoke,  and  hurried  away  to  do  some  little  er- 
rand at  her  bidding.  When  we  two  w^ere 
alone,  cousin  Holman  recurred  to  Holdsworth's 
marriage.  .She  was  one  of  those  people  who 
like  to  view  an  event  from  every  side  of  prob- 
ability, or  even  possi])ility ;  and  she  had  been 
cut  short  from  indulging  herself  in  this  way 
during  dinner. 

"  To  think  of  Mi".  Holdsworth's  being  mar- 
ried !  I  can't  get  over  it,  Paul.  Not  but  what 
he  was  a  very  nice  young  man!  I  don't  like 
her  name,  though;  it  sounds  foreign.  Say  it 
again,  my  dear.  I  hope  she'll  know  how  to 
take  care  of  him,  English  fashion.  He  is  not 
strong,  and  if  she  does  not  sec  that  his  things 
are  well  aiix-d,  I  should  be  afraid  of  the  old 
cough." 

"He  always  said  he  was  stronger  than  he 
had  evei'  been  before,  aflci"  that  fc'\er." 


192  COUSrN  PHILLIS. 

"  He  might  think  so,  but  I  have  my  doubts. 
He  was  a  very  pleasant  young  man,  but  he  did 
not  stand  nursing  very  well.  He  got  tired  of 
being  coddled,  as  he  called  it.  I  hope  they'll 
soon  come  back  to  England,  and  then  he'll 
have  a  chance  for  his  health.  I  wonder,  now, 
if  she  speaks  English;  but,  to  be  sure,  he  can 
speak  foreign  tongues  like  anything,  as  I've 
heard  the  minister  say," 

And  so  we  went  on  for  some  time,  till  she 
became  drowsy  over  her  knitting,  on  the  sultry 
summer  afternoon;  and  I  stole  away  for  a 
walk,  for  I  wanted  some  solitude  in  which  to 
think  over  things,  and,  alas!  to  blame  myself 
with  poignant  stabs  of  remorse. 

I  lounged  lazily  as  soon  as  I  got  to  the 
wood.  Here  and  there  the  bubbling,  brawling 
brook  circled  around  a  great  stone,  or  a  root  of 
an  old  tree,  and  made  a  pool;  otherwise  it 
coursed  brightly  over  the  gravel  and  stones.  I 
stood  by  one  of  these  for  more  than  half  an 
hour,  or,  indeed,  longer,  throwing  bits  of  wood 
or  pebbles  into  the  water,  and  wondering  what 
I    could   do   to   remedy    the   present    state    of 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH   LOVE.       193 

things.  Of  course  all  my  meditation  was  of 
no  use;  and  at  length  the  distant  sound  of  the 
horn  employed  to  tell  the  men  far  afield  to 
leave  off  work,  warned  me  that  it  was  six 
o'clock,  and  time  for  me  to  go  home.  Then  I 
caught  wafts  of  the  loud-voiced  singing  of  the 
evening  psalm.  As  I  was  crossing  the  ash- 
field  I  saw  the  minister  at  some  distance  talking 
to  a  man.  I  could  not  hear  what  they  were 
saying,  hut  I  saw  an  impatient  or  dissentient  (I 
could  not  tell  wliich)  gesture  on  the  part  of 
the  former,  who  walked  quickly  away,  and 
was  apparently  ahsorhed  in  his  thoughts,  for 
though  he  passed  within  twenty  yards  of  me, 
as  hoth  our  paths  cunveiged  toward  home,  he 
took  no  notice  of  me.  We  passed  the  evening 
in  a  way  which  was  even  worse  than  dinner- 
time. The  minister  was  silent,  depressed,  even 
irritable.  Poor  cousin  Holman  was  utterly 
perplexed  by  this  unusual  frame  of  mind  and 
temper  in  her  husband;  she  was  not  well  her- 
self, and  was  suffering  from  the  extreme  and 
sultry  heat,  which  made  her  less  talkative  than 
usual.  Phillis,  usuallv  so  reverently  tender  to 
13 


194  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

her  parents,  so  soft,  so  gentle,  seemed  now  to 
take  no  notice  of  the  iniusual  state  of  things, 
but  talked  to  me  —  to  anyone,  on  indifferent 
subjects,  regardless  of  her  father's  gravity,  of 
her  mother's  piteous  looks  of  bewilderment. 
But  once  my  eyes  fell  upon  her  hands,  con- 
cealed under  the  table,  and  I  could  see  the  pas- 
sionate, convulsive  manner  in  which  she  laced 
and  interlaced  her  fingers  perpetually,  wringing 
them  together  from  time  to  time,  wringing  till 
the  compressed  flesh  became  perfectly  white. 
What  could  I  do?  I  talked  with  her,  as  I  saw 
she  wished;  her  gray  eyes  had  dark  circles 
around  them,  and  a  strange  kind  of  dark  light 
in  them;  her  cheeks  were  flushed,  but  her  lips 
were  white  and  wan.  I  wondered  that  others 
did  not  read  these  signs  as  clearly  as  I  did. 
But  perhaps  they  did ;  I  think,  from  what  came 
afterward,  the  minister  did. 

Poor  cousin  Holman!  she  worshipped  her 
husband ;  and  the  outward  signs  of  his  uneasi- 
ness were  more  patent  to  her  simple  heart  than 
were  her  daughter's.  After  awhile  she  could 
bear  it  no  longer.     She  got  up,  and,  softly  lay- 


A   STORY   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       195 

ing  her  hand  on  his  broad  stooping  slioulder, 
she  said,-- 

"  VVliat  is  the  matter,  minister?  Has  any- 
tliing  gone  wrong?  " 

He  started  as  if  from  a  dream.  PhilHs 
Iiung  her  head,  and  caught  her  breath  in  terror 
at  the  answer  she  feared.  But  he,  looking 
around  with  a  sweeping  glance,  turned  his 
broad,  wise  face  up  to  his  anxious  wife,  and 
forced  a  smile,  and  took  her  hand  in  a  reassur- 
ing manner. 

"  I  am  blaming  myself,  dear.  I  have  been 
overcome  with  anger  this  afternoon,  I  scarcely 
knew  what  I  was  doing,  but  I  turned  away 
Timothy  Cooper.  He  has  killed  the  Ribstone 
pippin  at  the  corner  of  the  oichard;  gone  and 
piled  the  quicklime  for  the  mortar  for  the  new 
stable  wall  against  the  trunk  of  the  tree  — 
stupid  fellow!  killed  the  tree  outright  —  and  it 
loaded  with  apples!" 

"  And  Ribstone  pippins  are  so  scarce!  "  said 
sympathetic  cousin    Holman. 

"Ay!  But  Timothy  is  but  a  half-wit;  and 
he  has  a  wife  and  children.      He  had  often   put 


196  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

me  to  it  sore,  with  his  slothful  ways,  but  I  had 
laid  it  before  the  Lord,  and  striven  to  bear  with 
him.  But  I  will  not  stand  it  any  longer,  it's 
past  my  patience.  And  he  has  notice  to  find 
another  place.  Wife,  we  won't  talk  more 
about  it."  He  took  her  hand  gently  off  his 
shoulder,  touched  it  with  his  lips;  but  relapsed 
into  a  silence  as  profound,  if  not  quite  so  mo- 
rose in  appearance,  as  before.  I  could  not  tell 
why,  but  this  bit  of  talk  between  her  father 
and  mother  seemed  to  take  all  the  factitious 
spirits  out  of  Phillis.  She  did  not  speak  now, 
but  looked  out  of  the  open  casement  at  the 
calm  large  moon,  slowly  moving  through  the 
twilight  sky.  Once  I  thought  her  eyes  were 
filling  with  teais;  but,  if  so,  she  shook  them 
off,  and  arose  with  alacrity  when  her  mother, 
tired  and  dispirited,  proposed  to  go  to  bed  im- 
mediately after  prayers.  We  all  said  good- 
night in  our  separate  ways  to  the  minister,  who 
still  sat  at  the  table  with  the  great  Bible  open 
before  him,  not  much  looking  up  at  any  of  our 
salutations,  but  returning  them  kindly.  But 
when  I,  last  of  all,  was  on   the  point  of  leav- 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.        1 97 


ing  the  room,  he  said,  still  scarcely  looking 
up,  — 

"  Paul,  you  will  oblige  me  by  staying  here 
a  few  minutes.  I  would  fain  have  some  talk 
with  you." 

I  knew  what  was  coming,  all  in  a  moment. 
I  carefully  shut-to  the  door,  put  out  my  candle, 
and  sat  down  to  my  fate.  lie  seemed  to  find 
some  difficulty  in  beginning,  for,  if  I  had  not 
heard  that  he  wanted  to  speak  to  me,  I  should 
never  have  guessed  it,  he  seemed  so  much  ab- 
sorbed in  reading  a  chapter  to  the  end.  Sud- 
denly he  lifted  his  head  up  and  said, — 

"  It  is  about  that  friend  of  yours.  Holds- 
worth!  Paul,  have  you  any  reason  for  think- 
ing he  has  played  tricks  upon  Phillisr" 

I  saw  that  his  eyes  were  blazing  with  such 
a  fire  of  anger  at  the  l)are  idea,  that  I  lost  all 
my  presence  of   mind,  and  only  repeated,— 

"Played  tricks  on  Phillis!" 

"Ay!  you  know  what  I  mean:  made  love 
to  her,  courted  her,  made  her  thiidv  that  he 
loved  her,  and  then  gone  a\va\  and  left  her. 
Put  it  as  you  will,  oidv  give   me  an   answer  of 


198  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

some  kind  or  another  —  a  true  answer,  I  mean 
—  and  don't  repeat  my  words,  Paul." 

He  was  shaking  all  over  as  he  said  this.  I 
did  not  delay  a  moment  in  answering  him, — 

"  I  do  not  believe  that  Edward  Holds  worth 
ever  played  tricks  on  Phillis,  ever  made  love 
to  her;  he  never,  to  my  knowledge,  made  her 
believe  that  he  loved  her." 

I  stopped;  I  wanted  to  nerve  up  my  cour- 
age for  a  confession,  yet  I  wished  to  save  the 
secret  of  Phillis'  love  for  Holdsworth  as  much 
as  I  could;  that  secret  which  she  had  so  striven 
to  keep  sacred  and  safe,  and  I  had  need  of 
some  reflection  before  I  went  on  with  what  I 
had  to  say. 

He  began  again  before  I  had  quite  arranged 
my  manner  of  speech.  It  was  almost  as  if  to 
himself,  —  "She  is  my  only  child;  my  little 
daughter!  She  is  hardly  out  of  childhood;  I 
have  thought  to  gather  her  imdcr  my  wings 
for  years  to  come;  her  mother  and  I  would  lay 
down  our  lives  to  keep  her  from  harm  and 
grief."  Then,  raising  his  voice,  and  looking 
at  me,  he  said,   "  Something   has  gone  wrong 


A    STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       199 

with  the  child ;  and  it  seemed  to  me  to  date 
from  the  time  she  heard  of  that  marriage.  It 
is  hard  to  think  that  you  may  Itnovv  more  of 
her  secret  cares  and  sorrows  than  I  do  —  but 
perhaps  you  do,  Paul,  perhaps  you  do  —  only, 
if  it  he  not  a  sin,  tell  me  what  I  can  do  to 
make  her  happy  again ;  tell  me." 

"  It  will  not  do  much  good,  I  am  afraid," 
said  I,  "but  I  will  own  how  wrong  I  did;  I 
don't  mean  wrong  in  the  way  of  sin,  but  in 
the  way  of  judgment.  IToldsworth  told  me 
just  before  he  went  that  he  loved  Phillis,  and 
hoped  to  make  her  his  wife,  and  I  told  her." 

There!  it  was  out;  all  mv  part  in  it,  at 
least;  and  I  set  my  lips  tight  together  and 
waited  for  the  words  to  come.  I  did  not  see 
his  face;  I  looked  straight  at  the  wall  opposite; 
but  I  heard  him  once  begin  to  speak  and  then 
turn  over  the  leaves  in  the  book  before  him. 
IIow  awful! v  still  that  room  was!  The  air 
outside,  how  still  it  was!  The  open  windows 
let  in  no  rustle  of  lca\'cs,  no  twitter  or  move- 
ment (jf  birds  —  no  sound  whatever.  The  clock 
on  the  stairs  —  the  minister's  hard  brcathmtr  — 


200  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

was  it  to  go  on  forever?  Impatient  beyond 
bearing  at  the  deep  quiet,  I  spoke  again, — 

« I  did  it  for  the  best,  as  I  thought." 

The  minister  shut  the  book  to  hastily  and 
stood  up.     Then  I  saw  how  angry  he  was. 

"For  the  best,  do  you  say?  It  was  best, 
was  it,  to  go  and  tell  a  young  girl  what  you 
never  told  a  word  of  to  her  parents,  who  trusted 
you  like  a  son  of  their  own?" 

He  began  walking  about,  up  and  down  the 
room  close  under  the  open  windows,  churning 
up  his  bitter  thoughts  of  me. 

"  To  put  such  thoughts  into  the  child's 
head,"  continued  he;  "to  spoil  her  peaceful 
maidenhood  with  talk  about  another  man's 
love;  and  such  love,  too,"  he  spoke  scornfully 
now  —  "a  love  that  is  ready  for  any  young 
woman.  Oh,  the  misery  in  my  poor  little 
daughter's  face  to-day  at  dinner  —  the  misery, 
Paul!  I  thought  you  were  one  to  be  trusted  — 
vour  father's  son,  too,  to  go  and  put  such 
thoughts  into  the  child's  mind;  you  two  talking 
together  about  that  man  wishing  to  marry  her." 

I  could  not  help  remembering  the  pinafore, 


A   STOR7'  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.         20I 

the  childish  garment  which  Phillis  wore  so 
long,  as  if  her  parents  were  unaware  of  her 
progress  toward  womanhood.  Just  in  the  same 
way  the  minister  spoke  and  thought  of  her  now, 
as  a  child,  whose  innocent  peace  I  had  spoiled 
by  vain  and  foolish  talk.  I  knew  that  the 
truth  was  different,  though  I  could  hardly  have 
told  it  now ;  but,  indeed,  I  never  thought  of 
trying  to  tell;  it  was  far  from  my  mind  to  add 
one  iota  to  the  sorrow  which  I  had  caused. 
The  minister  went  on  walking,  occasionally 
stopping  to  move  things  on  the  table,  or  articles 
of  furniture,  in  a  sharp,  impatient,  meaningless 
way;  then  he  began  again, — 

"So  young,  so  pure  from  the  world!  how 
could  you  go  and  talk  to  such  a  child,  raising 
hopes,  exciting  feelings — all  to  end  thus;  and 
best  so,  even  though  I  saw  her  poor  piteous 
face  look  as  it  did.  I  can't  forgive  you,  Paul; 
it  was  more  than  wrong  —  it  was  wicked  —  to 
go  and  repeat  that  man's  words." 

His  back  was  now  to  the  door,  and,  in  list- 
ening to  his  low  angry  tones,  he  did  not  hear  it 
slowly  open,   nor   did    he   see    Phillis,   standing 


202  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

just  within  the  room,  until  he  turned  round ; 
then  he  stood  still.  She  must  have  been  half 
undressed;  but  she  had  covered  herself  with  a 
dark  winter  cloak,  which  fell  in  long  folds  to 
her  white,  naked,  noiseless  feet.  Her  face  was 
strangely  pale;  her  eyes  heavy  in  the  black 
circles  around  them.  She  came  up  to  the  table 
very  slowly  and  leaned  her  hand  upon  it,  say- 
ing mournfully, — 

"Father,  you  must  not  blame  Paul.  I  could 
not  help  hearing  a  great  deal  of  what  you  were 
saying.  He  did  tell  me,  and  perhaps  it  would 
have  been  wiser  not,  dear  Paul!  But  —  oh, 
dear!  oh,  dear!  I  am  so  sick  with  shame!  He 
told  me  out  of  his  kind  heart,  because  he  saw 
—  that  I  was  so  very  unhappy  at  his  going 
away." 

She  hung  her  head  and  leaned  more  heavily 
than  before  on  her  supporting  hand. 

"I  don't  understand,"  said  her  father;  but 
he  was  beginning  to  understand.  Phillis  did 
not  answer  till  he  asked  her  again.  I  could 
have  struck  him  now  for  his  cruelty;  but  then 
I  knew  all. 


A   STORr  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.      203 

"I  loved  him,  father!"  she  said  at  length, 
raising  her  eyes  to  the  minister's  face. 

"  Had  he  ever  spoken  of  love  to  you  ?  Paul 
says  not!" 

"  Never."  She  let  fall  her  eyes,  and  drooped 
more  than  ever.  I  almost  thought  she  would 
fall. 

"  I  could  not  have  believed  it,"  said  he,  in  a 
hard  voice,  yet  sighing  the  moment  he  had 
spoken.  A  dead  silence  for  a  moment.  "Paul! 
I  was  unjust  to  you.  You  deserved  blame, 
but  not  all  that  I  said."  Then  again  a  silence. 
I  thought  I  saw  Phillis'  white  lips  moving,  but 
it  might  be  the  flickering  of  the  candle-light  — 
a  moth  had  flown  in  through  the  open  case- 
ment and  was  fluttering  around  the  flame;  I 
might  have  saved  it,  l)ut  I  did  not  care  to  do  so, 
my  heart  was  too  full  of  other  things.  At  any 
rate,  no  sound  was  heard  for  long  endless  min- 
utes. Then  he  said,  — "  Phillis!  did  we  not 
make  you  happ}-  here?  Have  we  not  loved 
you  enough  ? " 

She  did  not  seem  to  understand  the  drift  of 
this  question;  she  looked  up  as  if  bewildered. 


204  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

and  her  beautiful  eyes  dilated  with  a  painful, 
tortured  expression.  He  went  on,  without  no- 
ticing the  look  on  her  face;  he  did  not  see  it, 
I  am  sure. 

"And  yet  you  would  have  left  us,  left  your 
home,  left  your  father  and  your  mother,  and 
gone  away  with  this  stranger,  wandering  over 
the  world." 

He  suffered,  too;  there  were  tones  of  pain 
in  the  voice  in  which  he  uttered  this  reproach. 
Probably  the  father  and  daughter  were  never 
so  far  apart  in  their  lives,  so  unsympathetic. 
Yet  some  new  terror  came  over  her,  and  it 
was  to  him  she  turned  for  help.  A  shadow 
came  over  her  face,  and  she  tottered  toward 
her  father;  falling  down,  her  arms  across  his 
knees,  and  moaning  out,— 

"  Father,  my  head !  my  head !  "  and  then 
she  slipped  through  his  quick-enfolding  arms, 
and  lay  on  the  floor  at  his  feet. 

I  shall  never  forget  his  sudden  look  of 
agony  while  I  live;  never!  We  raised  her  up; 
her  color  had  strangely  darkened ;  she  was  in- 
sensible.    I  ran    througfh   the   back-kitchen   to 


A   STO/n'  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       205 

the  yard  pump  and  brought  back  water.  The 
minister  had  her  on  his  knees,  her  head  against 
his  breast,  almost  as  though  she  were  a  sleep- 
ing child.  He  was  trying  to  rise  ujd  with  his 
poor  precious  bui'den,  but  the  momentary  ter- 
ror had  robbed  the  strong  man  of  his  strength, 
and  he  sank  back  in  his  chair  with  sobbing 
breath. 

"She  is  not  dead,  Paul!  is  she?"  he  whis- 
pered, hoarse,  as  I  came  near  him. 

I,  too,  could  not  speak,  but  I  pointed  to  the 
quivering  of  the  muscles  around  her  mouth. 
Just  then  cousin  Ilolman,  attracted  by  some 
unwonted  sound,  came  down.  I  remember  I 
was  surprised  at  the  time  at  her  presence  of 
mind,  she  seemed  to  know  so  much  better  what 
to  do  than  the  minister,  in  the  midst  of  the  sick 
affright  which  blanched  her  countenance,  and 
made  her  treml^le  all  over.  I  think  now  that 
it  was  the  recollecti(jn  of  what  had  gone  before; 
the  miserable  thought  that  possibly  his  words 
had  brought  on  this  attack,  whatever  it  might 
be,  that  so  unmanned  the  minister.  We  car- 
ried   her   upstairs,  antl    while   the  women   were 


2o6  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

putting  her  to  bed,  still  unconscious,  still  slightly 
convulsed,  I  slipped  out,  and  saddled  one  of 
the  horses,  and  rode  as  fast  as  a  heavy-trotting 
beast  could  go,  to  Hornby,  to  find  the  doctor 
there,  and  bring  him  back.  He  was  out, 
might  be  detained  the  whole  night.  I  remem- 
ber saying,  "God  help  us  all!"  as  I  sat  on  my 
horse,  under  the  window,  through  which  the 
apprentice's  head  had  appeared  to  answer  my 
furious  tugs  at  the  night-bell.  He  was  a  good- 
natured  fellow.     He  said, — 

"  He  may  be  home  in  half  an  hour,  there's 
no  knowing;  but  I  dare  say  he  will.  I'll  send 
him  out  to  the  Hope  Farm  directly  he  comes 
in.  It's  that  good-looking  young  woman,  Hol- 
man's  daughter,  that's  ill,  isn't  it?" 

"  Yes." 

"  It  would  be  a  pity  if  she  was  to  go. 
She's  an  only  child,  isn't  she?  I'll  get  up,  and 
smoke  a  pipe  in  the  surgery,  ready  for  the 
governor's  coming  home.  I  might  go  to  sleep 
if  I  went  to  bed  again." 

"Thank  you,  you're  a  good  fellow!"  and  I 
rode  back  almost  as  quickly  as  I  came. 


A   STOR7'   OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       207 

It  was  a  brain  fever.  The  doctor  said  so, 
when  he  came  in  the  early  summer  morning. 
I  beUeve  we  had  come  to  know  the  nature  of 
the  illness  in  the  night-watches  that  had  gone 
before.  As  to  hope  of  ultimate  recovery,  or 
even  evil  prophecy  of  the  probable  end,  the 
cautious  doctor  would  be  entrapped  into  neither. 
He  gave  his  directions  and  promised  to  come 
again;  so  soon,  that  this  one  thing  showed  his 
opinion  of  the  gravity  of  the  case. 

By  God's  mercy  she  recovered,  but  it  was  a 
long,  weary  time  Hrst.  According  to  pre- 
viously made  plans,  I  was  to  have  gone  home 
at  the  beginning  of  August.  But  all  such 
ideas  were  put  aside  now,  without  a  word  being 
spoken.  I  really  think  that  I  was  necessary  in 
the  house,  and  especially  necessary  to  the  min- 
ister at  this  time;  my  father  was  the  last  man 
in  the  world,  under  such  circumstances,  to  ex- 
pect me  home. 

I  say,  I  think  I  was  necessary  in  the  house. 
Every  person  ( I  had  almost  said  every  creature, 
for  all  the  duml)  l)casts  seemed  to  know  and 
love  Phillis)  about  the  place  went  grieving  and 


2oS  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

sad,  as  though  a  cloud  was  over  the  sun.  They 
did  their  work,  each  striving  to  steer  clear  of 
the  temptation  to  eye-service,  in  fulfilment  of 
the  trust  reposed  in  them  by  the  minister.  For 
the  day  after  Phillis  had  been  taken  ill,  he  had 
called  all  the  men  employed  on  the  farm  into 
the  empty  barn ;  and  there  he  had  entreated  their 
prayers  for  his  only  child;  and  then  and  there 
he  had  told  them  of  his  present  incapacity  for 
thought  about  any  other  thing  in  this  world 
but  his  little  daughter,  lying  nigh  unto  death, 
and  he  had  asked  them  to  go  on  with  their 
daily  labors  as  best  they  could  without  his 
direction.  So,  as  I  say,  these  honest  men  did 
their  work  to  the  best  of  their  ability,  but  they 
slouched  along  with  sad  and  careful  faces,  com- 
ing one  by  one  in  the  dim  mornings  to  ask 
news  of  the  sorrow  that  overshadowed  the 
house;  and  i-eceiving  Betty's  intelligence, always 
rather  darkened  by  passing  through  her  mind, 
with  slow  shakes  of  the  head  and  a  dull  wist- 
fulness  of  sympathy.  But,  poor  fellows,  they 
were  hardly  fit  to  be  trusted  with  hasty  mes- 
sages,   and    here    my    poor    services    came    in. 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH    LOVE.       209 

One  time  I  was  to  ride  hard  to  Sir  William 
Bentinck's  and  petition  for  ice  out  of  his  ice- 
house, to  put  on  Phillis'  head.  Another  it  was  to 
Eltham  I  must  go,  by  train,  horse,  anyhow,  and 
bid  the  doctor  there  come  for  a  consultation, 
for  fresh  symptoms  had  appeared,  which  Mr. 
Brown,  of  Hornby,  considered  unfavorable. 
Many  an  hour  have  I  sat  on  the  window-seat, 
half-way  up  the  stairs,  close  by  the  old  clock, 
listening  in  the  hot  stillness  of  the  house  for 
the  sounds  in  the  sick-room.  The  minister 
and  I  met  often,  but  spoke  together  seldom. 
He  looked  so  old  —  so  old!  He  shared  the 
nursing  with  his  wife;  the  strength  that  was 
needed  seemed  to  be  given  to  them  both  in  that 
day.  They  required  no  one  else  about  their 
child.  Every  office  about  her  was  sacred  to 
them*,  even  Betty  only  went  into  the  room  for 
the  most  necessary  purposes.  Once  I  saw 
Phillis  through  the  open  door;  her  pretty 
golden  hair  had  been  cut  off  long  before;  her 
head  was  covered  with  wet  cloths,  and  she  was 
moving  it  backward  and  forward  on  the  pillow, 
with  weary,  never-ending  motion,  her  poor 
14 


2  10  COUSIN  PHIL  LIS. 

eyes  shut,  trying  in  the  old  accustomed  way  to 
croon  out  a  hymn  tune,  hut  perpetually  hreak- 
ing  it  up  into  moans  of  pain.  Her  mother  sat 
by  her,  tearless,  changing  the  cloths  upon  her 
head  with  patient  solicitude.  I  did  not  see  the 
minister  at  first,  but  there  he  was  in  a  dark  cor- 
ner, down  upon  his  knees,  his  hands  clasped 
together  in  passionate  prayer.  Then  the  door 
shut  and  I  saw  no  more. 

One  day  he  was  wanted  and  I  had  to  sum- 
mon him.  Brother  Robinson  and  another 
minister,  hearing  of  his  "  trial,"  had  come  to 
see  him.  I  told  him  this  upon  the  stair-landing 
in  a  whisper.     He  was  strangely  troubled. 

"  They  will  want  me  to  lay  bare  my  heart. 
I  cannot  do  it.  Paul,  stay  with  me.  They 
mean  well ;  but  as  for  spiritual  help  at  such  a 
time  —  it  is  God  only,  God  only,  who  can  give 
it." 

So  I  went  in  with  him.  They  were  two 
ministers  from  the  neighborhood ;  both  older 
than  Ebenezer  Holman;  but  evidently  inferior 
to  him  in  education  and  worldly  position.  I 
thought   they    looked   at   me   as   if    I   were   an 


A    STOnr  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       21  l 

intruder,  but  remembering  the  minister's  words 
I  held  my  ground,  and  took  up  one  of  poor 
Pliillis'  books  (of  which  I  could  not  read  a 
word)  to  have  an  ostensible  occupation.  Pres- 
ently I  was  asked  to  "  engage  in  prayer,"  and 
we  all  knelt  down.  Brother  Robinson  "  leading," 
and  quoting  largely  as  I  remember  from  the 
Book  of  Job.  He  seemed  to  take  for  his  text, 
if  texts  are  ever  taken  for  prayers,  "Behold 
thou  hast  instructed  many;  but  now  it  is  come 
upon  thee,  and  thou  faintest,  it  toucheth  thee 
and  thou  art  troubled."  When  we  others  rose 
up,  the  minister  continued  for  some  minutes  on 
his  knees.  Then  he  too  got  up,  and  stood 
facing  us  for  a  moment,  before  we  all  sat 
down  in  conclave.  After  a  pause  Robinson 
began, — 

"  We  grieve  for  you.  Brother  Holman,  for 
your  trouble  is  great.  But  we  would  fain  have 
you  icmcmber  you  are  as  a  light  set  on  a  hill; 
and  the  congregation  are  looking  at  you  with 
watchful  eyes.  We  have  been  talking  as  we 
came  along  on  the  two  duties  required  of  you 
in  this  strait;  Brother  Hodgson  and  me.     And 


COUSIN  PHILLIS. 


we  have  resolved  to  exhort  you  on  these  two 
points.  First,  God  has  given  you  the  oppor- 
tunity of  showing  forth  an  example  of  resigna- 
tion." Poor  Mr.  Holman  visibly  winced  at 
this  word.  I  could  fancy  how  he  had  tossed 
aside  such  brotherly  preachings  in  his  happier 
moments;  but  now  his  whole  system  was  un- 
strung, and  "resignation"  seemed  a  term 
which  presujDposed  that  the  dreaded  misery  of 
losing  Phillis  was  inevitable.  But  good  stupid 
Mr.  Robinson  went  on.  "  We  hear  on  all 
sides  that  there  are  scarce  any  hopes  of  your 
child's  recovery;  and  it  may  be  well  to  bring 
you  to  mind  of  Abraham ;  and  how  he  was 
willing  to  kill  his  only  child  when  the  Lord 
commanded.  Take  example  by  him.  Brother 
Holman.  Let  us  hear  you  say,  '  The  Lord 
giveth  and  the  Lord  taketh  away.  Blessed  be 
the  name  of  the  Lord!'" 

There  was  a  pause  of  expectancy.  I  verily 
believe  the  ininister  tiicd  to  feel  it;  but  he 
could  not.  Heart  of  flesh  was  too  strong. 
Heart  of  stone  he  had  not. 

"  I  will  say  it  to  my   God,  when   He  gives 


A   STORY  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       213 

me  strength,  —  when  the  day  comes,"  he  spoke 
at  last. 

The  other  two  looked  at  each  other,  and 
shook  their  heads.  I  think  the  reluctance  to 
answer  as  they  wished  was  not  quite  unex- 
pected. The  minister  went  on :  "  There  are 
hopes  yet,"  he  said,  as  if  to  himself.  "  God 
has  given  me  a  great  heart  for  hoping,  and  I 
will  not  look  forward  beyond  the  hour." 
Then  turning  more  to  them,  and  speaking 
louder,  he  added  :  "  Brethren,  God  will 
strengthen  me  when  the  time  comes,  when 
such  resignation  as  you  speak  of  is  needed. 
Till  then  I  cannot  feel  it;  and  what  I  do  not 
feel  I  will  not  exjoress;  using  words  as  if  they 
were  a  charm."  He  was  getting  chafed,  I 
could  see. 

He  had  rather  put  them  out  1)\-  these 
speeches  of  his;  ])ut  after  a  short  time  and 
some  more  shakes  of  the  liead,  Robinson  be- 
gan again,— 

"  Secondlv,  we  would  liave  vou  listen  to 
the  \oicc  of  the  lod,  and  ask  yourself  for 
what    sins    this    trial    has    l^een   laid  upon    vou; 


214  COUSIN  PIIILLTS. 

whether  you  may  not  have  been  too  much 
given  up  to  your  farm  and  your  cattle;  whether 
this  world's  learning  has  not  puffed  you  up  to 
vain  conceit  and  neglect  of  the  things  of  God; 
whether  you  have  not  made  an  idol  of  your 
daughter? " 

"I  cannot  answer  —  I  will  not  answer!" 
exclaimed  the  minister.  "My  sins  I  confess  to 
God.  But  if  they  were  scarlet  (and  they  are 
so  in  His  sight,"  he  added,  humbly),  "I  hold 
with  Christ  that  afflictions  are  not  sent  by  God 
in  wrath  as  penalties  for  sin." 

Is  that  orthodox,  Brother  Robinson?" 
asked  the  third  minister,  in  a  deferential  tone 
of  inquiry. 

Despite  the  minister's  injunction  not  to 
leave  him,  I  thought  matters  were  getting  so 
serious  that  a  little  homely  interruption  would 
be  more  to  the  purpose  than  my  continued 
presence,  and  I  went  around  to  the  kitchen  to 
ask  for   Betty's  help. 

" 'Od  rot  'em!"  said  she;  "they're  always 
a-coming  at  ill-convenient  times;  and  they  have 
such  hearty  appetites,  they'll  make  nothing  of 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       215 

what  would  have  served  master  and  you  since 
our  poor  lass  has  been  ill.  I've  but  a  bit  of 
cold  beef  in  th'  house;  but  I'll  do  some  ham 
and  eggs,  and  that'll  rout  'em  from  worrying 
the  minister.  They're  a  deal  quieter  after 
they've  had  their  victual.  Last  time  as  old 
Robinson  came,  he  was  very  reprehensible 
upon  master's  learning,  which  he  couldn't  com- 
pass to  save  his  life,  so  he  needn't  have  been 
afeard  of  that  temptation,  and  used  words  long 
enough  to  have  knocked  a  body  down;  but 
after  me  and  missus  had  given  him  his  fill  of 
victual,  and  he'd  had  some  good  ale  and  a  pipe, 
he  spoke  just  like  any  other  man,  and  could 
crack  a  joke  with  me." 

Their  visit  was  the  only  break  in  the  long 
weary  days  and  nights.  I  do  not  mean  that 
no  other  inquiries  were  made.  I  believe  that 
all  the  neighbors  hung  about  the  place  daily 
till  thev  could  learn  from  some  out-comer  how 
Phillis  Ilolman  was.  But  they  knew  better 
than  to  come  up  to  the  house,  for  the  August 
weather  was  so  hot  that  every  door  and  win- 
dow  was   kept   constantly    open,  and  the  least 


2l6  COUSIN  P  HILL  IS. 

sound  outside  penetrated  all  through.  I  am 
sure  the  cocks  and  hens  had  a  sad  time  of  it; 
for  Betty  drove  them  all  into  an  empty  barn, 
and  kept  them  fastened  up  in  the  dark  for  sev- 
eral days,  with  very  little  effect  as  regarded 
their  crowing  and  clacking.  At  length  came 
a  sleep  which  was  the  crisis,  and  from  which 
she  wakened  up  with  a  new  faint  life.  Her 
slumber  had  lasted  many,  many  hours.  We 
scarcely  dared  to  breathe  or  move  during  the 
time;  we  had  striven  to  hope  so  long,  that  we 
were  sick  at  heart,  and  durst  not  trust  in  the 
favorable  signs:  the  even  breathing,  the  moist- 
ened skin,  the  slight  return  of  delicate  color 
into  the  pale,  wan  lips.  I  recollect  stealing  out 
that  evening  in  the  dusk,  and  wandering  down 
the  grassy  lane,  under  the  shadow  of  the  over- 
arching elms  to  the  little  bridge  at  the  foot  of 
the  hill,  where  the  lane  to  the  Hope  Farm 
joined  another  road  to  Hornby.  On  the  low 
parapet  of  that  bridge  I  found  Timothy  Coop- 
er, the  stupid,  half-witted  laborer,  sitting,  idly 
throwing  bits  of  mortar  into  the  brook  below. 
He  just   looked  up  at  me  as  I  came  near,   but 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       217 

gave  me  no  greeting,  either  by  word  or  ges- 
ture. He  had  generally  made  some  sign  of 
recognition  to  me,  but  this  time  I  thought  he 
was  sullen  at  being  dismissed.  Nevertheless  I 
felt  as  if  it  would  be  a  relief  to  talk  a  little  to 
some  one,  and  I  sat  down  by  him.  While  I 
was  thinking  how  to  begin,  he  yawned 
weariedly. 

"You  are  tired,  Tim?"  said  I. 

"  Ay,"  said  he.  "  But  I  reckon  I  may  go 
home  now." 

"  Have  you  been  sitting  here  long?" 

"  Welly  all  day  long.  Leastways  sin'  seven 
i'  th'  morning." 

"  Why  what  in  the  world  have  you  been 
doing?  " 

"Nought." 

"Why  have  you  been  sitting  here,  then?" 

"  T'  keep  carts  off."  He  was  up  now, 
stretching  himself  and  shaking  his  lubberly 
liml)s. 

"  Carts!   wliat  carts?  " 

"Carts  as  might  ha'  wakened  yon  wench! 
It's   Hornbv    inarket-(hi\ .       I    reckon   yo're   no 


2i8  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

better  nor  a  half-wit  yoursel'."  He  cocked  his 
eye  at  me  as  if  he  were  gauging  my  intel- 
lect. 

"  And  have  you  been  sitting  here  all  day  to 
keep  the  lane  quiet?" 

"  Ay.  I've  nought  else  to  do.  Th'  minis- 
ter has  turned  me  adrift.  Have  yo'  beared 
how  th'  lass  is  faring  to-night?" 

"  They  hope  she'll  waken  better  for  this 
long  sleep.  Good-night  to  you,  and  God  bless 
you,  Timothy,"  said  I. 

He  scarcely  took  any  notice  of  my  words, 
as  he  lumbered  across  a  stile  that  led  to  his  cot- 
tage. Presently  I  went  home  to  the  farm. 
Phillis  had  stirred,  had  spoken  two  or  three 
faint  words.  Her  mother  was  with  her,  drop- 
ping nourishment  into  her  scarce  conscious 
mouth.  The  rest  of  the  household  were  sum- 
moned to  evening  prayer  for  the  first  time  for 
many  days.  It  was  a  return  to  the  daily  habits 
of  happiness  and  health.  But  in  these  silent 
days  our  very  lives  had  been  an  unspoken 
prayer.  Now  we  met  in  the  house-place,  and 
looked  at  each  otiier  with  strange  recognition 


A   STORT  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.       219 

of  the  thankfulness  on  all  our  faces.  We  knelt 
down;  we  waited  for  the  minister's  voice.  He 
did  not  begin  as  usual.  He  could  not;  he  was 
choking.  Presently  we  heard  the  strong  man's 
sob.  Then  old  John  turned  around  on  his 
knees,  and   said, — 

"  Minister,  I  reckon  we  have  blessed  the 
Lord  wi'  all  our  souls,  though  we've  ne'er 
talked  about  it;  and  mavbe  He'll  not  need 
spoken  words  this  night.  God  bless  us  all,  and 
keep  our  Phillis  safe  from  harm!     Amen." 

Old  John's  impromptu  prayer  was  all  we 
had  that  night. 

"  Our  Phillis,"  as  he  had  called  her,  grew 
better  day  by  day  from  that  time.  Not  quick- 
ly; I  sometimes  grew  desponding,  and  feared 
that  she  would  never  be  what  she  had  been  be- 
fore; no  more  she  has,  in  some  ways. 

I  seized  an  carlv  opportuuitv  to  tell  the 
minister  about  Timoth\'  Cooper's  unsolicited 
watch  on  the  bridge  duiing  the  long  summer's 
day. 

"  (iod  forgi\e  me!"  said  the  minister.  "I 
have  been  too  proud  in  my  own  conceit.     Tlie 


220  COUSIN  PHILLIS. 

first  steps  I  take  out  of  this  house  shall  be  to 
Cooper's  cottage." 

I  need  hardly  say  Timothy  was  reinstated 
in  his  place  on  the  farm;  and  I  have  often 
since  admired  the  j^'^tience  with  which  his 
master  tried  to  teach  him  how  to  do  the  easy 
work  which  was  henceforward  carefully  ad- 
justed to  his  capacity. 

Phillis  was  carried  downstairs  and  lay  for 
hour  after  hour  quite  silent  on  the  great  sofa, 
drawn  up  under  the  windows  of  the  house- 
place.  She  seemed  always  the  same,  gentle, 
quiet  and  sad.  Her  energy  did  not  return  with 
her  bodily  strength.  It  was  sometimes  pitiful 
to  see  her  parents'  vain  endeavors  to  rouse  her 
to  interest.  One  day  the  minister  brought  her 
a  set  of  blue  ribbons,  reminding  her  with  a 
tender  smile  of  a  former  conversation  in  which 
she  had  owned  to  a  love  of  such  feminine 
vanities.  She  spoke  gratefully  to  him,  but 
when  he  was  gone  she  laid  them  on  one  side 
and  languidly  shut  her  eyes.  Another  time  I 
saw  her  mother  brinof  her  the  Latin  and  Italian 


A   STORr  OF  ENGLISH  LOVE.      221 

books  that  she  had  been  so  fond  of  before  her 
ilhiess  —  or,  rather,  before  Holdsworth  had  gone 
away.  That  was  worst  of  all.  She  turned 
her  face  to  the  wall  and  cried  as  soon  as  her 
mother's  back  was  turned.  Betty  was  laying 
the  cloth  for  the  early  dinner.  Her  sharp 
eyes  saw  the  state  of  the  case. 

"Now,  Phillis!"  said  she,  coming  up  to  the 
sofa;  "we  ha'  done  a'  wc  can  for  you,  and  th' 
doctors  has  done  a'  they  can  for  you,  and  I 
think  the  Lord  has  done  a'  He  can  for  you,  and 
more  than  you  deserve,  too,  if  you  don't  do 
something  for  yourself.  If  I  were  you,  I'd 
rise  up  and  snuff  the  moon,  sooner  than  break 
your  father's  and  your  mother's  hearts  wi' 
watching  and  waiting  till  it  pleases  you  to  fight 
your  own  way  back  to  cheerfulness.  There, 
I  never  favored  long  preachings,  and  I've  said 
my  say." 

A  day  or  two  after  Phillis  asked  me,  when 
we  were  alone,  if  I  thought  my  father  and 
mother  would  allow  her  to  go  and  stay  with 
tliem   for  a  couple  of  months.     She  blushed  a 


222 


COUSTN  PHILLIS. 


little  as  she  faltered  out  her  wish  for   a  change 
of  thought  and  scene. 

"Only  for  a  short  time,  Paul.  Then  —  we 
will  go  back  to  the  peace  of  the  old  days.  I 
know  we  shall;  I  can,  and  I  will!" 


THE    END. 


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